Supporting COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout before Charter Class Arrives: The University of California, Irvine Experience

Despite numerous challenges in relation to being a recently established school, the University of California, Irvine (UCI) School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (SPPS), similar to many schools of pharmacy in the United States, was highly committed to supporting the rollout of COVID-19 vacci...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Pharmacy 2021-10, Vol.9 (4), p.164
Main Authors: Chan, Alexandre, Joe, Melanie D., Hirsch, Jan D.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
COVID-19 vaccines
Immunization
pharmacist
Students
vaccination
vaccination clinic
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Despite numerous challenges in relation to being a recently established school, the University of California, Irvine (UCI) School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (SPPS), similar to many schools of pharmacy in the United States, was highly committed to supporting the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines. UCI SPPS and our affiliated UCI Medical Center (UCIMC) Pharmacy Department partnered to spearhead the pharmacy element of a large-scale COVID-19 vaccination clinic on campus for both employees and the community. Three key initiatives were established in order to overcome the obstacles we faced in the large-scale roll out of COVID-19 vaccines: (1) forging new collaborations within the pharmacy team, (2) leveraging interprofessional education and practice, and (3) raising awareness of the pharmacists’ role. Our response to the COVID-19 vaccines at UCI was a tangible, visible model that demonstrated that, while we continue to embrace our role in team-based, patient-centered care, it is also important for us to step up and lead the profession. Additionally, this vaccine rollout experience is a teachable moment for our communities and our health professional partners as we continue to march forward as one voice to serve the American public.
ISSN:2226-4787
2226-4787
DOI:10.3390/pharmacy9040164