KENTWOOD, Mich. — On Tuesday, March 16, Kent County will host an African Community COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic. It is a partnership with the group A Glimpse of Africa.
The goal is to provide an equitable distribution of the vaccine, and give resources to break down any barriers the community may have to receiving one.
There will be things like transportation and translators available if needed.
"For some communities not to get this vaccine, then we are not really eliminating the COVID-19 that we're all trying to fight," said Fridah Kanini, Founder and CEO of A Glimpse of Africa. "So, if we get everybody to have the access, this means that every community is going to be having equal chances to fight the disease, and we can get rid of it."
It is located at the Kent County Clinic at 4700 Kalamazoo Ave. SE in Kentwood. Registration is required, and time slots are available from 8am to 11am, and 1pm to 3:30pm. Kanini said anyone who requires a translator or other resources should mention that in their registration.
Registration can be done by emailing: aglimpseofafrica@gmail.com, Rebecca.deng@kentcountymi.gov, or snyamuhungu@cwsglobal.org.
For now, the clinic is only open to those who are qualified, including those 65 years and older, food industry workers, and those 50 years and older with underlying conditions. Kent County hopes to offer similar events to this once eligibility is expanded.
"We know that people may not speak English, they may have difficulty accessing a computer to sign up online for a vaccine appointment, they may have challenges, even making a phone call to make an appointment, said Brian Hartl, epidemiologist with the Kent County Health Department. "So, we really want to break down those barriers, work with our community partners to put the registration in their hands, and then bring the vaccine to the communities in place that they're familiar with."
Hartl said the Health Department has been working with various communities in the county to find the best way to bring equitable distribution of the vaccine. He said representation is very necessary to access the resources.
"We've seen different populations who have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 infection," said Hartl. "So, we for sure want to get those people vaccinated. We don't want to just the people with the resources to be able to get the vaccine, those with internet access or transportation, who speak English. We don't want only those people to be able to access the vaccine."
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