Written by Geri Aglipay, MPH, FACHIC Hepatitis B Task Force Lead
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Monday, 28 December 2009 18:00 |
FACHIC helped organize and coordinate volunteers for the Skokie Health Department’s H1N1 Vaccination Clinics during the month of December, which sought to vaccinate high priority populations in the state of Illinois. Four eight-hour clinics were held at the Oakton Park Community Center in Skokie, IL to vaccinate an estimated 5,000 Illinois residents each clinic. Individuals and families that were vaccinated were not only from the Chicagoland and Cook County vicinities, but many were also residents from Lake, Will and DuPage counties.
To assist in this mass vaccination effort, FACHIC was a key entity that helped organize and coordinate two groups of volunteers: licensed clinicians and non-clinical volunteers. To prepare for the activity, FACHIC met with health department staff Dr. Catherine Counard, Director and worked with Susan Reisberg, Public Health Nurse Administrator, to understand the logistics and identify the nature of help sought, including the type of volunteers needed to help make the clinics run seamlessly. Moreover, FACHIC took the lead to develop an administrative process that would support the department’s organization and verification of FACHIC volunteers for each clinic. Twelve FACHIC volunteers donated their time to help the Skokie Health Department meet its objective.
The current economic climate has ushered in a tide of increased budget cuts and layoffs to local health departments nationwide, thus severely compromising departments’ ongoing public health services to the community, especially in the wake of emerging infectious diseases such as H1N1. FACHIC once again expresses thanks to its volunteers during this event, as they provided an invaluable support service not only to the Skokie Health Department, but the entire northern Illinois public health system. |
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