If you have questions about the COVID-19 vaccination, several local agencies have partnered to offer a webinar to help.
The Region 4 Office of Public Health has partnered with several local agencies to answer ongoing questions about the COVID-19 vaccine.
United Way of Acadiana, Southwest Louisiana Area Health Education Center (SWLAHEC), the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Nursing Professional Development Program, and Woman’s Foundation are coming together to feature six local health professionals to present a webinar entitled Defeating COVID-19: Answering the Community’s Questions About Vaccines.
This virtual discussion will field questions from community members and address vaccine related questions, discuss mRNA technology, and review vaccine safety and efficacy data to provide essential information about COVID-19 vaccines.
A panel of local professionals will be answering questions from the public.
“Now that we have entered a fourth surge in COVID-19 cases, many people have questions they want answered about vaccines and the Delta variant, which is more transmissible, more dangerous and is driving our high case counts,” said Tina Stefanski, OPH Regional Medical Director and panelist. “Vaccines are absolutely the way to slow this variant’s spread and eventually end the pandemic. It’s normal that people still have many questions about the vaccines, so we’ll be addressing concerns about their high level of safety and effectiveness and how they can protect you and your loved ones.”
“We are happy to be able to collect questions to ensure that the community can get their remaining questions answered. We know there is so much information out there, and the opportunity to submit your questions directly – and have as many of them answered as possible – and then have trusted local experts answer them – we are honored to be a part of this effort,” said Carlee Alm-LaBar, CEO/President of United Way of Acadiana.
The panelists represent a range of specialties and organizers made a conscious effort to include specialists that would have expertise in some of the common topic areas expected to generate questions. The panelists include:
- Dr. Bryan Sibley (Pediatrics)
- Dr. Garabet "Garo" Akoghlanian (Infectious Diseases)
- Dr. John Storment (Reproductive Endocrinologist)
- Dr. Frank Courmier (Critical Care/Pulmonologist/Intensivist)
- Dr. Francois Villinger (Director, UL Lafayette New Iberia Research Center)
- Dr. Tina Stefanski (Regional Medical Director, Office of Public Health Region 4)
Members of the public are asked to register for the event, and submit questions by July 31 at www.unitedwayofacadiana.org/covid19 [unitedwayofacadiana.org].
The virtual discussion will take place on Thursday, August 5, from 12-1:30 PM.
