Over the course of the semester, I have partnered with CRIS Healthy Aging Center in Urbana, IL. where I helped out with their vaccine distribution campaign. While volunteering with them once a week for two hours when I did not have a morning class, I was given a cellphone and a spreadsheet with a list of names of people to call. Each of these people were targeted by CRIS as members of the community who may need assistance in order to make an appointment for their vaccine. This could be for a multitude of reasons such as lack of stable internet connection/devices, difficulty with traveling to the appointment or other health issues that may get in the way of their effort to get vaccinated. When I talked to these residents, I was given a worksheet that was to be used as a script when I talked to them so that I could clearly convey the information to them as well as ensure that they had ample opportunities to ask questions that I may be able to answer for them. In order to streamline the question and answer portion of our phone call, I was also given a fact sheet that was generated by the CDC that aided my ability to answer commonly asked questions about the vaccine as well as alleviate any worries that they may have about receiving the vaccine. Through my work with my partners at CRIS we were able to reach out to hundreds of the residents of Champaign, Urbana, and the surrounding communities to help get as many people vaccinated against COVID-19 as possible in our efforts to reach herd immunity as a community. My work through CRIS and through LAS 199 has complimented my other coursework work in multiple different ways this semester. For starters, in my RHET 105 class, the entire semester I had been writing research papers about what the best potential strategies for vaccinating people could look like in order to be efficient and equitable with how doses of the vaccine are distributed. My research has correlated well with CRIS’ plan as they both recommend targeting vulnerable populations such as the elderly and those with preexisting conditions in order to minimize the impact that the virus has had on the elderly, more specifically their high rate of mortality. My work with CRIS has also correlated with my course work in my introductory Molecular and Cellular Biology course (MCB 150) as we learned about the structure of viruses as well as how vaccines can be derived from deactivated virus particles or pieces of genetic material which can be used to defend against such dangerous pathogens.
Through my public health message which I chose to be a podcast, I wanted to try to convince the public to get vaccinated through empathizing with what they must be feeling as well as include important information from the Illinois Department of Public Health as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While doing my volunteering work, I noticed that many people were feeling hesitant towards getting their shots so I wanted to do everything I could in my power to try and answer whatever questions they had. This experience is what inspired me to make my PSA around dispelling some myths that are associated with getting the vaccine. Another thing that I wanted to include in my PSA which was very prevalent throughout my OpEds this semester was also my journey through mental health struggles that were partially related to the pandemic. I felt that including this information in my PSA would be useful to provide not only a factual appeal to my listeners to get vaccinated but also an emotional plea as everyone getting vaccinated will help just start our worldwide recovery from what has taken place over the last year. Some of the assumptions behind my argument would be that I am an expert on the subject of vaccines (which clearly I am not, I am just a college freshman) and also the fact that I assume that everyone is eligible to receive a vaccine and that there are enough doses for each of my listeners to be able to receive a dose. The latter of those assumptions will probably be the greatest hurdle in getting a vaccine as that is something that is completely out of their control. My argument to get the vaccine is important because getting vaccinated is the best way for us to get out of this pandemic and back into a somewhat normal life post-pandemic. It is necessary that people know why they should be vaccinated because it will serve as further motivation for them to make the appointment and getting factual information will help alleviate anxiety in the leadup to getting vaccinated. I hope that my PSA will inspire at least one person to get vaccinated as one person could make all the difference if the virus will continue to circulate around our community if we are unable to reach herd immunity. There are a few counter arguments towards the ideas portrayed by my PSA, one of which being that getting vaccinated is not right for everyone depending on if they have had a life threatening reaction to a vaccine in the past or if they are allergic to one of the ingredients. Some think that letting the vaccine run its course will be an easier way to reach herd immunity but studies have shown that using that method will cost so many more people their lives and it will completely overwhelm our hospital systems. If our hospital systems get even more overwhelmed than they already are, that means that even people who do not have COVID-19 will be negatively affected due to not being able to receive proper medical care for their various ailments. That in itself could cost more lives making it even more important that people GO GET VACCINATED!