In February, nearly 90 seniors and juniors from the Avila University School of Nursing began vaccinating first responders at North Kansas City Hospital and Overland Park Regional Medical Center. The students then participated in community vaccinations for the remainder of the semester.

Senior Connor Wingate said the experience challenged him and his fellow students, but their training gave them the skills and knowledge to adjust to any situation.

“By the time we stepped into the vaccination clinics, we had plenty of clinical experience and hands-on skills training to help us feel comfortable screening patients and administering vaccines,” he said. “Once we began, the pace was very fast, and we had to learn how to streamline our patient interactions to get as many people through as possible.”

For Wingate, who has already accepted a position with the Emergency Department at the University of Kansas Medical Center, the reactions he received after patients received their vaccinations made all the challenges worth it.

“It felt great knowing we got to help people who had been isolated for months missing their families, and it was amazing to see so many people working together for such a wonderful cause” he said. “All of the senior citizens told us about how excited they were to see their families for the first time in months—I have never seen people so excited to get a shot!”