![]() Maryland clinics don’t offer walk-up appointments, but the mass vaccination site at M&T Bank Stadium is allowing walk-up scheduling. “Will it keep me from dying from this terrible disease? The good news is all of these say yes to that.” Can I register on-site at any locations? The new services and resources offered by Prince George’s County Memorial Library System have been particularly impactful for immigrants, who make up 23% of the county population, and Spanish-speaking community members.“What people I think are mostly interested in is, is it going to keep me from getting really sick?” Collins said. In addition, the library system distributed more than 124,000 self-test kits and more than 120,000 KN95 masks. In all, more than 2,400 vaccines were administered to community members through the hotline and on-site clinics. When vaccines became more widely available, Prince George’s County Memorial Library System hosted 25 vaccine clinics over a period of 5 months. In the final weeks of the program, the library system called an additional 52,170 county residents in zip codes known to have lower vaccination rates and offered these residents help with vaccine access and COVID-19 relief more generally. In order to address the unintended inequities arising from linguistic and digital barriers, Prince George’s County Memorial Library System set up their “Vaccine Hunter” Hotline as a multilingual phone hotline “to connect county residents and workers with vaccine information, pre-registration opportunities and appointments.” During the 8 ½ weeks that the program operated, the hotline helped over 1,200 community members to obtain a COVID-19 vaccine appointment. “Vaccine hunters” began as a social media movement where volunteers helped community members and strangers book vaccination appointments online. In Maryland, library employees from the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System pivoted during COVID-19 by providing new, critical services to the local community.Īt the beginning of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, when vaccine appointments were scarce, Prince George’s County Memorial Library System established the “Vaccine Hunter” Hotline. They have been helping to counter misinformation, spread the word about available vaccines, support with the registration process, and some libraries have even served as sites for vaccination clinics. As a trusted source of information and a well-connected hub within their local communities, libraries across America are working with local and state governments and community leaders to support vaccination efforts. Public libraries serve as ideal partners for COVID-19 vaccination rollout. Reaching RIM Communities through Libraries As COVID-19 vaccines become available, it is important to ensure RIM communities receive the opportunity to be vaccinated. ![]() ![]() The requirement in most of the U.S., that a person must visit a medical facility to receive medical services, is a large barrier for many individuals and communities, particularly for preventive health care such as immunizations. In the COVID-19 response, partnerships are essential to reaching refugee, immigrant, and migrant (RIM) communities, maximizing resources, reducing duplicating efforts, and improving the delivery of services and resources. ![]()
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