Elizabethtown College’s Public Health program is currently working in collaboration with the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies to help direct the Pennsylvania Department of Health, Division of Immunizations in their mission to understand vaccine hesitancy present in Plain populations throughout Central Pennsylvania.
Etown students meeting with Division of Immunization staff in Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies.
The new initiative, known as the Immunization Ambassador program, will allow Etown Public Health students to gain a deeper understanding of how immunization efforts unfold in the community, participating in community outreach with the purpose of understanding vaccine hesitancy and building connections within the community, and within the state. This spring, the program will start off with two to three Etown Public Health students, with the intention of bringing on more students in the fall.
“The goal of this program is to develop effective communications strategies to Plain Communities of Central PA, with a focus on Lancaster County, so that the Division of Immunizations can provide accurate information, presented in culturally meaningful ways,” Elizabethtown College Public Health Program Director, Robert Aronson said.
Participants will be trained through the Young Center, in understanding the cultural background of the Plain community and complete training with the Department of Immunizations, regarding immunizations and clinical observations.
Upon the successful completion of the program, the students will receive a certificate of achievement, having formed a strong partnership with the Division of Immunizations and gained hands-on experience in the public health field.
“The Plain Community is a growing part of our regional population, and a slice of our community that has sometimes been misunderstood by health professionals,” Director and Senior Scholar of the Young Center at Elizabethtown College, Steve Nolt said. “When our students participate in events that include these folks, it also provides them with a specific and valuable experience in how public health practices are adapted to meet the needs of distinctive populations in our community, and as such, serves as an example of the varied ways public health professionals work in a multicultural context.”
The formal Memorandum of Understanding was recently finalized by the state and the program will be officially piloted through Elizabethtown College this spring, with the goal of eventually being adopted by other colleges and universities throughout Pennsylvania.
