In collaboration with the Clark County Combined Health District (CCCHD) and following Governor DeWine’s announcement that all colleges and universities can receive the COVID-19 vaccine for student use, Wittenberg will run an on-campus vaccination clinic for students on Thursday, April 8, from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the University’s Health, Wellness, & Athletics (HWA) Complex. Assisting with the vaccine administration will be Wittenberg’s own nursing students.
Fourteen sophomore and junior nursing students, under the supervision of Dr. Marie Bashaw, chair of the nursing program, along with nursing faculty members Carolyn Gersch and Stacy Gilson, will rotate between the areas during the 5.5-hour clinic.
“The CCCHD helped us obtain the vaccine from the State of Ohio and asked if our department would be willing to give shots and assist with aftercare,” Bashaw said. “This is a tremendous experience for our students, and something they never would’ve gotten to take part in under normal circumstances. They’ve been able to use their skills to maintain and enhance the quality of life for campus and the community. We would’ve done other clinicals at this time, but we modified our lab experience to meet the needs of the Wittenberg community.”
As with the national administration of the vaccine, the cost is free to participants and proof of insurance is not required. The University is expected to receive the Pfizer vaccine for this special clinic.
Vice President for Student Development and Dean of Students Casey Gill, in collaboration with campus partners and Wittenberg’s COVID Response team, has also established a group of volunteers to help with registration, line moving, and other areas of the clinic. The CCCHD will be bringing the vaccine and will provide an oversite group to help manage the clinic.
“The opportunity to provide a COVID-19 vaccine to Wittenberg students helps in the efforts underway on campus to prevent and reduce the spread of the virus,” Gill said. “We strongly encourage all students in our community to take advantage of this opportunity.”
To encourage vaccinations, every participant will have the opportunity to receive a free Wittenberg-branded Nalgene water bottle and T-shirt on April 27, the next Tiger Break Day, with proof of COVID-19 vaccination (first doses will count). Students are also encouraged to inform the Office of Student Development of their vaccination through the University’s housing portal. Faculty and staff are encouraged to do the same via the Office of Human Resources. In doing so, the COVID-19 Response Team can utilize vaccination data regarding Wittenberg’s population to inform changes to COVID-19 protocols and mitigation strategies on-campus.
Per the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, once individuals are fully vaccinated (starting two weeks following the second dose), they will not need to quarantine as an exposed contact so long as it is within 90 days, and they are not experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms. For more guidance on fully vaccinated individuals, click here. Additionally, all fully vaccinated members of the community must continue following public health protocols on campus including mask wearing, social distancing, and proper hand hygiene.
