UA Nursing Students are Stopping the Spread of the Flu – One Student at a Time

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Due to the commonality of the flu virus on college campuses, the University of Alabama College of Community Health Services has been working with student nurses on UA’s campus to set up tents all over campus and administer flu shots.

Leslie Zganjar, the director of relations for College of Community Health Services, said that there is a lot of strategy that goes into advertising, planning and hosting these pop-up flu shots.

“We try to focus on setting up in areas that are guaranteed to get high traffic. We know that students have a busy schedule,” Zganjar said, “but we also want to be sure that they are able to be as healthy as possible and the flu shot is one way to do this,”

She went on to say that the nurses will also be stationed in dorm rooms, so they can “catch students before they head to class.” Zganjar indicated that when working with college students, convenience is key.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, the United States’ flu activity has increased rapidly over the past couple of months and is bordering on epidemic levels. Zganjar said that it’s important now more than ever for students to take initiative in their health and personal prevention of the flu because “it is the most effective way to prevent the virus” and it can protect others that maybe unable to get the shot due to other factors.

As of Monday, UA nursing students have administered over 5,400 flu shots. Zganjar said that she is very proud of the progress that has been made so far and accredits it to their marketing strategies. In addition to the pop-up station’s convenient location, the CCHS also posts often on their Facebook page and submits their events to the UA events calendar, so that students can have information about the event before receiving a shot.

To stay updated on the CCHS’ upcoming initiatives and events on campus, click here.