Flu vaccination coverage has been consistently lower among Black Americans since 2010, with 43 percent of Black adults receiving the vaccine versus 51 percent of White adults in the 2022–23 season, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
To combat misinformation leading to vaccine hesitancy, seven Vaccine Equity Education Coalition (VEEC) Ambassadors, all of whom are high school members of the Boys & Girls Club of Newark, visited the Rutgers Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy on August 9 to explore ideas to enhance vaccine equity and build community trust in preventative medicine. This partnership, in collaboration with Rutgers Health and the Vaccine Equity Education Coalition, exemplifies a commitment to promoting health equity and providing educational resources to those who need them most.
During the visit, faculty, students and staff from the pharmacy school engaged with VEEC ambassadors, who ranged from sophomores to seniors in high school, and discussed the importance of vaccines and the role they play in maintaining public health in partnership with local pharmacists.
The event featured an educational session and a simulation scenario in the Mannino Community Pharmacy simulation laboratory, where the members practiced one-on-one vaccine counseling scenarios. These exercises helped them address common misconceptions, barriers and vaccine hesitancy in their communities. Topics included vaccine effectiveness, mistrust of information, the role of social media in spreading misinformation and barriers like the inability to pay for vaccines. This experience was the culmination of a six-week summer experience for VEEC Ambassadors aimed at increasing youth-driven knowledge and awareness of vaccine equity. To read the full story.