Nine UMass Medical School student volunteers administered COVID-19 vaccinations to the community on Monday, April 19, at the YWCA Central Massachusetts in downtown Worcester. The mobile clinic, which delivered roughly 300 doses of the Moderna vaccine, was one of scores so far deploying trained health care personnel as well as nonclinical volunteers in the , a program organized by UMass Medical School鈥檚 Commonwealth Medicine to bring COVID-19 vaccinations to where people need them the most. The event itself was organized by the Worcester Department of Health and Human Services.
More than 7,000 volunteers statewide have signed up with the Vaccine Corps as of mid-April and have delivered more than 55,000 doses of vaccine to nearly 41,000 people.
Pointing out the Salem Square location, serving largely vulnerable residents, Mina Botros, SOM 鈥24 and an organizer of student volunteers, said, 鈥淲hat that really means is, we came to the community.鈥
Graduate School of Nursing student Reginald Sarpong said administering vaccinations throughout the community has given him a sense of accomplishment in being able to counter the pandemic.
Camila Hernandez, SOM 鈥24, said it was 鈥渁 really amazing feeling鈥 for students to get out of their homes, engage in hands-on work, and 鈥渄o something to fight COVID and to get to know the community a little better.鈥
Other UMMS volunteers at the YWCA were: Alex Richard, SOM 鈥24; Ben Potee, SOM 鈥24; Brian Argus, SOM 鈥22; Christy Mangiacotti, GSN; Kamal Sidhu, GSN; Jack Dufton, SOM 鈥24; and Ekaterina Skaritanov, SOM 鈥24.