VIP project

The Campbell County Healthcare Foundation’s VIP (Vaccines for Influenza Prevention) project will start vaccinating students in Campbell County School District beginning October 28, 2015.

The project, over a year in development, comes from the last community needs assessment, which proposed that increasing the number of children receiving flu shots could significantly improve community health. More children getting vaccinated should mean fewer absences from school, and fewer parents and family members getting sick or staying home with sick children.

Donors gave over $60,000 to the project to purchase injectable and nasal vaccine for 2,000 children for the 2015-2016 school year. Families were offered the opportunity to participate when school started in August, and vaccines will be given at all Campbell County Schools, including the YES House and John Paul II Catholic School in October and November. Nurses from Campbell County Public Health will give the vaccine, using the Kid Clinic’s mobile van, and CCH provided the supplies like gloves and syringes.

Public Health will track the number of vaccines given, numbers of confirmed cases of influenza in the community as reported to the state and school absences attributed to the flu, comparing them to last year’s numbers to evaluate the effectiveness of the project.

It is hoped that the VIP project will be funded for another year. Donors and supporters include CCH, Cloud Peak Energy, Basin Electric Power Cooperative, First Interstate Bank, The Coalition Family Health Center, Campbell County, Prevention Management Organization of Wyoming, Campbell County Sports Screening program and the CCMG Kid Clinic.