威尼斯人娱乐城牙科学院将与药学院合作，从7月26日开始向前往其牙科诊所的患者提供免费的COVID-19疫苗接种。
Melanie Simmer-Beck, Ph.D., R.D.H, chair of the dental school’s Department of Dental Public Health and Behavioral Sciences, said the project brings the two schools together to provide a community-based public health service.
The program is one of many 威尼斯人娱乐城 efforts supported by a 杰克逊县的500万关怀基金 to encourage low-income and underserved populations in Kansas City’s east side to receive the COVID vaccine.
“We felt it was important to offer vaccinations to 牙科学院 patients to be acting within the spirit of what this grant was intended to do,” Simmer-Beck said.
More than 1,000 of the dental clinic’s patients come from areas of Kansas City identified as part of the grant’s target audience with the intent of addressing vaccine hesitancy and health equities. 去年，这些牙科诊所在COVID限制下运营，为1750多名患者提供了预约服务，并接待了576名居住在这些目标地区的患者。 When at full capacity, the dental school’s clinics serve more than 2,200 patients a week and are the largest provider of dental services in the states of Missouri and Kansas.
Simmer-Beck说，当患者通过电话收到预约提醒时，他们将被告知疫苗的选择。 Student dental providers working in the clinics will also ask their patients if they are interested in receiving the vaccine if they haven’t already done so and obtain the necessary signed consent forms. 患者预约时间为周一至周五上午9点和下午1点。
药学院最初将有经过认证的学生和教师接种员随叫随到，并在诊所时间来牙科学校，并在要求时进行注射。
“This is the first time that pharmacy students will be providing a service to 牙科学院 patients,” Simmer-Beck said. “It’s a great opportunity for pharmacy, dental and dental hygiene students to collaborate and learn from one another in a real-world setting.”
威尼斯人娱乐城’s pharmacy students and faculty volunteers have played a large role in statewide vaccination efforts since the full-scale rollout of vaccines in January. 到今年3月，他们已经在密苏里州各地接种了17500多剂疫苗。
Cameron Lindsey, chair of the pharmacy school’s Division of Pharmacy Practice and Administration, said the program will provide patients the ease of being vaccinated without having to see another care provider.
“We have the vaccine and know the logistics of how to mix and store it,” she said. “We’ll help get the dental school get up to speed with the process and model that for them. It’s a team effort. It doesn’t matter who gives the shot. There’s a community need and, interprofessionally, we’re combining our resources to get the vaccine where it’s needed.”
Simmer-Beck说，药学院院长Russ Melchert在帮助启动牙科诊所疫苗项目方面发挥了重要作用。 自去年9月以来，梅尔切特一直担任牙科学院的临时院长。
“Having Dr. Melchert serve as the interim 牙科学院 dean helped move this notion forward,” she said. “His knowledge about the resources at both schools helped us bring together the right people in a timely manner.”
梅尔切特说，该项目是两所学校共同努力增加疫苗接种机会的绝佳机会。
“Pharmacy and dentistry are two of the most accessible health care professions for most people in this country and putting them together creates synergistic opportunities to help people live healthier lives,” he said. “Our students have already had a huge impact in providing COVID vaccinations and this creates another great chance for the community to see what great students, staff, and faculty we have at 威尼斯人娱乐城.”
作为对牙科患者接种新冠疫苗的额外奖励，那些返回接受第二次接种的人将获得免费的电池驱动的电动牙刷。
“Even if we give just one or two vaccines a day, that’s better than where we were before,” Simmer-Beck said.