On January 20, Tower Health announced it was looking to build a team of volunteers to support the health system’s COVID-19 vaccination efforts. The health system began accepting applications from licensed clinicians to administer vaccine and individuals who could provide volunteer clerical support in the health system’s community-based COVID-19 vaccine clinics. In one week, the health system received more than 500 applications from gracious community members offering their expertise.
“We knew that when COVID-19 arrived in our communities it was going to take everyone coming together to defeat the virus,” said Mary Agnew, DNP, Tower Health Chief Nursing Officer. “For nearly a year our communities have been so gracious with their support. Our team is overwhelmed by the outpouring of interest to volunteer in our clinics. We look forward to working with this dedicated group and want to thank them for their commitment to the health of their families, friends, and neighbors.”
The health system is beginning to work with the first group of volunteers, 87 of whom can administer the vaccine and 38 who will provide clerical support. When the first group of volunteers is successfully onboarded, a second group of volunteers will be contacted for assistance. Volunteers not yet contacted are asked to remain patient while details are finalized.
Due to the overwhelming response, Tower Health is not seeking additional applications at this time.
Tower Health is following Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and PA Department of Health (DOH) guidelines for prioritizing distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine and working to operationalize distribution of vaccine as the population of eligible persons expands. Our ability to offer vaccine to these individuals will depend on our vaccine supply and availability of appointments for scheduling. Updated information will be provided in the COVID-19 Information Center and we encourage eligible persons to check the pages regularly.
