UNIVERSITY CONNECTIONS
VCU VACCINE CORPS:
STUDENTS VOLUNTEERING IN THE PANDEMIC Eva Miller; VCU DDS Class of 2023
In the spring of my first year of dental school in 2020, I was overwhelmed by the loss caused by the pandemic. Now as I dive into clinic during my third year of dental school, I reflect on the opportunity the pandemic gave in expanding the scope of practice in dentistry, my clinical experience, and meaningful patient care. Like many in the field of dentistry, I had been frustrated with how I could make a difference during the pandemic. However, on January 19, 2021, the Virginia Senate passed emergency bill No. 1445, which expanded the vaccinator role to include all healthcare professions that administer medications. Under this state of emergency, providers and students training in the fields of Dentistry, Nursing, Pharmacy, and Medicine could provide the COVID vaccine. The idea of working with a patient’s arm, as a dental student was daunting. Yet, I reminded myself that if I can perform an inferior alveolar nerve block, then I am qualified to administer a simple injection into a patient’s arm. Thus, I joined the VCU Vaccine Corps and began vaccinating in the spring of 2021. The expansion of practice made vaccine distribution more efficient and accessible to the public during the beginning of the vaccine distribution. For example, patients that regularly attended dental appointments but otherwise did not regularly see other healthcare providers could receive the vaccine from their dental office. In other circumstances, this expansion benefited patients that lived in areas where the number of previously qualified vaccinators was limited. In
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particular, the expansion and number of qualified vaccinators enabled more people to be vaccinated at the VCU events that I attended. While the pandemic replaced my hands on experience with videos and Zoom lectures, the VCU Vaccine Corps enabled me to continue gaining clinical experience. The vaccine events enabled interdisciplinary collaboration across healthcare professions that had not previously worked together. During one volunteer experience I worked with an EMT, a pulmonologist, a medical student, and a dental hygienist. Although our healthcare backgrounds differed, each person offered unique techniques for achieving our common goal in vaccinating our patients. In dentistry we are taught distraction techniques and to hide a needle from a patient’s visual field before administering an oral injection. I was able to offer this valuable lesson to my fellow vaccinators. In addition to healthcare collaboration, I also gained confidence in hands on experience. Before the pandemic closed the VCU dental clinics, I had performed merely a few nerve blocks and local anesthetic injections, however after joining the Vaccine Corps I had administered over 100 vaccines and become very comfortable administering injections. Finally, I will never forget the meaningful patient encounters I experienced while attending the VCU Vaccine Corps events. While normally most injections are met with apprehension, the emotion surrounding the COVID vaccinations was filled with gratitude and hope. At one event
I attended, a family wanted to have their vaccines administered at the same time. I vaccinated the mother while fellow volunteers vaccinated the daughter and father. The family was excited to have matching BandAids and looked forward to their daughter returning to school. In another experience, I vaccinated a young man who recorded the event for his family and friends to encourage them to get the vaccine.
Q & A with VCU Student Volunteers: What inspired you to join the Vaccine Corps?
“I was inspired to join the Vaccine Corps because I knew it would be a huge step for my profession as a future Dental Hygienist. Being able to provide vaccinations is a new skill set for hygienists, and I am lucky to have been provided the opportunity to work with many other healthcare professionals.” - Claudette Sullano, Dental Hygiene Class of 2021 “I was inspired to join the Vaccine Corps because I wanted to help make a difference during these unprecedented times with the pandemic. For a while, I felt guilty being in the priority group receiving the vaccine when I’m not a frontline worker, or even seeing patients in clinic. It’s in my nature to be of service to others, so I was excited when the opportunity presented itself with VCU Vaccine Corps.” - Tiffany Duong, DDS Class of 2023
