WU nursing department to assist in WHS vaccine distribution
Waynesburg University nursing students and the Department of Nursing staff are volunteering to help Washington Health System administer COVID-19 vaccines.
WHS is turning to the student nurses and faculty to help staff its vaccination sites in an effort to bolster the demand for qualified health professionals needed as the health system鈥檚 nurses continue to care for COVID-19 patients.
鈥淲e are beyond grateful for the service and health care that WHS frontline staff has been providing throughout the coronavirus pandemic. It has been a long road for them, and we are glad our nursing students and faculty can help alleviate the additional workload of manning vaccination sites,鈥� said Stacey Brodak, vice president for Institutional Advancement and University Relations at Waynesburg University.
The students will gain experience in mass immunization clinics and play a pivotal role in boosting vaccination efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the university, it takes a four-person team to inoculate one person, and nursing students will be trained to fill each role.
Students from other majors may also fill other various roles, if needed.
To prepare to administer the shots, nursing students participated in a two-day COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic Simulation, which was coordinated by Nursing Department Chair Dr. Kathy Stolfer and professor of nursing Dr. Sara Clutter.
鈥淲e are proud to step up as an active partner in the monumental task of community-wide vaccinations, reflective of our commitment to the Waynesburg University mission,鈥� said Stolfer.
WHS will operate three mass vaccination clinic sites, at WHS-Greene beginning Feb. 15, at Washington Crown Center starting Feb. 18, and in Peters Township.
The university鈥檚 partnership with WHS began several months ago, when WHS provided medical expertise for the university鈥檚 comprehensive health and safety plan to continue operating during the pandemic.
鈥淎s WHS began planning to expand COVID vaccine access for local residents, we knew that we would need a team of professionals to help us,鈥� said Barb McCullough, WHS vice president of human resources. 鈥淲HS was excited to learn that the university could assist us with staffing our new vaccine clinics, and it was a natural fit based on our ongoing partnership with the university.鈥�