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Assistance needed with Covid vaccinations in WNC

NC-based nonprofit organization VacCorps is seeking to recruit local volunteers to help administer Covid-19 vaccinations at various vaccination sites and centers throughout WNC. VacCorps wants to enroll 200 volunteers by April 1 and then pair those individuals with vaccination providers in need of additional workers to help speed vaccination efforts.

Volunteers are needed for on-site support roles such as greeting patients, checking them in and out of the facility, making sure facilities are clean and supplies are stocked, as well as for remote support roles such as scheduling patients and volunteer workers.

VacCorps, based in Durham, was founded to help North Carolinians get vaccinated faster by connecting non-traditional vaccinators, health science and laboratory personnel, and other volunteer support staff to vaccination providers and centers. By using volunteers as support staff, vaccination providers can increase capacity without further taxing their own staff—the healthcare system that is providing care for Covid-19 patients. VacCorps also seeks to connect its volunteer pool to help underserved communities access vaccinations.

“Serving Western North Carolina is important to us,” said Cathrine Leonowens, founder and CEO of VacCorps. “Our platform is powerful because it connects volunteers across counties based on location and distance that volunteers are willing to travel. This will ensure that volunteers from more populated areas, such as Asheville, Hendersonville, and Hickory, are available to support rural and less-populated counties and/or underserved communities with limited resources. By providing vaccination support staff, we can help community health centers increase vaccination capacity and better serve the folks in their communities.”

For more information or to volunteer, visit www.vaccorps.org 

Submitted by Cathrine Leonowens