Eighty ATU employees received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine on Feb. 3 and will receive their second dose on Feb. 11.
According to the CDC, studies show that COVID-19 vaccines effectively keep someone from getting sick or reduce the side effects of COVID-19 if it’s contracted.
“There are many reasons that people may be hesitant to receive the vaccine, and that is understandable. In the Health and Wellness Center, we hope to educate our campus in ways that would help them be more confident in receiving the vaccine. We hope that as many people will take the vaccine as possible when it’s available to them,
but we understand that there are many questions, and we’d love to help answer those questions. The staff in the Health and Wellness Center have received our vaccine. We feel confident in recommending it to our students, faculty and staff,” Kristy Davis, associate dean for student wellness and health, said.
While some employees received their vaccine on campus, a few have gone off-campus. “I did receive my first shot of the Moderna vaccine at [the] C & D Drug Store. What was important to me was that my 95-year-old mother and my wife received the vaccine and [it] decreased my anxiety for their health. I had no physical reaction to the shot, but seeing people being vaccinated made me hopeful that Tech might be able to return to something approaching normal by the fall,” Carl Brucker, head of the department of English and World Languages, said.
The CDC has been reporting that vaccination is an essential tool to help society get back to normal. Tech has not been able to host a mass COVID-19 vaccination day but is hoping to shortly.
“At this time, the state is allocating doses of vaccine to pharmacies and hospitals only. So, the doses we have available are being generously shared with ATU by our local pharmacies. ATU has applied to be a vaccine provider. We hope that eventually when there is an additional vaccine supply, we will be given enough doses to provide a mass vaccination clinic through the Health and Wellness Center,” Davis said.
ATU has been hosting free COVID-19 testing days and has testing appointments available daily for anyone interested in testing.
“Even after you get your vaccine, you will need to keep wearing a mask that covers your nose and mouth, washing your hands often and staying at least six feet away from other people you do not live with. This gives you and others the best protection from catching the virus. Right now, experts don’t know how long the vaccine will protect you, so it’s a good idea to continue following the guidelines from CDC and your health department. We also know not everyone will be able to get vaccinated right away, so it’s still important to protect yourself and others,” Davis said.
