Immunization Outreach in Las Vegas Trail: A Partnership between TCU Nursing, LVTRise, and Tarrant County Public Health
by Alexandra Farmer, Meredith Henson, Nicole Jereb, & Julia Robles
Over this semester, our clinical group had the opportunity to serve the Las Vegas Trail (LVT) community in Fort Worth. At first, we participated in the weekly food pantry at the LVTRise community center, building boxes of groceries out of food delivered from the food bank and handing them out to those in the community with need.
In September, we met with our LVTRise stakeholder, Paige Charbonnet, who informed us that a large number of children had been removed from the LVT public schools due to non-compliance with vaccination status. At this time, our clinical group simultaneously understood that this was a community need we needed to immediately address, and we agreed we needed to intervene in this situation to help with getting these children vaccinated and back into school. Two members of our team attended a meeting with the Immunization Collaboration of Tarrant County to gain more insight and perspectives on the vaccination efforts happening in the community and the region. We researched ways to connect with hard-to-reach populations and worked those methods into outreach strategies.
Our clinical group partnered with LVTRise and Tarrant County Public Health to hold an immunization clinic for the children of the LVT community. We organized outreach to spread the word about the immunization clinic by distributing flyers in English and Spanish to the local schools, connecting with school nurses, and informing community members at the weekly food pantry to ensure every community member was aware of the clinic and the importance of vaccination as well.
In today’s world, where health crises can spread rapidly and have global consequences, immunization clinics play a critical role in safeguarding public health. These clinics offer a vital service to communities, providing easy access to vaccines that prevent a range of illnesses, truly serving as the frontline in disease prevention. Vaccination clinics are about more than just individual health; they’re about community protection. When people participate in vaccination programs, it helps protect vulnerable populations and keeps healthcare systems from becoming overwhelmed during disease outbreaks. These clinics also help reduce healthcare costs in the long run by preventing diseases that could lead to hospitalizations, long-term health complications, or even death. For example, vaccinating children against polio eradicated the disease in many parts of the world, saving millions of lives and reducing the burden on healthcare systems.
We were able to host the immunization clinic at the LVTRise community center on October 22nd. Tarrant County Public Health Department generously supplied all the necessary vaccines to protect against diseases like measles, mumps, rubella, polio, and whooping cough. Our team coordinated a streamlined setup that prioritized efficiency and comfort. From the moment we arrived, it was clear we were about to make a real difference. Families came in continuously, and as each child received their vaccines, we saw firsthand the relief and gratitude of parents who were one step closer to bringing their kids back to the classroom.
Upon tracking the outcomes of the outreach and vaccination clinic, we determined that we were able to vaccinate 74 patients and administer a total number of 216 vaccines. Teresa Aguilar, the Tarrant County Public Health Immunization Outreach Coordinator, informed us that in a regular 8-hour day at a clinic, there is usually an average of about 30 patients seen; however, we far surpassed that average.
We are glad we had the opportunity to work with the Public Health Department, so we could see a little bit about what they do, and how. It was also incredibly gratifying being able to do something this semester that really made an impact on the community. It is an amazing feeling to know that the challenges and barriers we faced were completely worth it, as well as the extensive effort we put in to ensuring this clinic was a success. Helping to host and coordinate this immunization outreach was such an enriching experience, and it truly highlighted the importance of collaboration, community engagement, and adaptability in responding to and addressing healthcare disparities in underserved communities such as this one. This experience inspired us to continue to advocate for health equity in our nursing careers, and to always seek out opportunities to lend support to underserved populations in meaningful and sustainable ways.
This experience was a perfect culmination of our semester’s work and dedication to public health. By partnering with LVTRise and TCPH, we were able to leverage our skills, resources, and commitment to serving others in a way that created lasting, meaningful impact. It was a powerful reminder of the importance of community partnerships and how, together, we can address and overcome barriers to health and education. Ending our semester with this successful clinic has been incredibly fulfilling, and it’s heartening to know our work is part of a greater journey towards health equity in Fort Worth.