Presentation Type
Presentation
Faculty Mentor’s Full Name
Helene Bazin-Lee
Faculty Mentor’s Department
Department of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Abstract / Artist's Statement
Less than a year since the World Health Organization first declared Covid-19 to be a global pandemic, The United States Food and Drug Administration has given authorization for the emergency use of three live-saving Covid-19 vaccines. With several vaccine candidates entering phase three clinical trials all over the world and more receiving approval for emergency use, questions continue to arise about how each vaccine works and what their effectiveness is at preventing Covid-19 illness. In fact, the pandemic has revealed a significant gap in the general public’s knowledge about the importance of all vaccines, not just the vaccines made to combat Covid-19.
To address the lack of vaccine education, I compiled information from peer-reviewed articles and webpages, including the World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control, into a written report. After being reviewed by an expert in vaccine immunology, I organized the written information into an easily accessible website. Of course, the internet has an abundance of resources about vaccines; however, finding appropriate information requires searching through countless websites that oversimplify the science or journal articles with complex scientific vocabulary. With this project, I intended to present material in a single location that was easier for the general public to comprehend than a chapter in a college textbook or an article in a scientific journal. The website contains descriptions of the cellular processes involved in building immunity when a patient receives a vaccine and explanations about the differences between vaccine types. Ultimately, my goal was to provide materials that would allow individuals to make informed decisions about vaccinations while also mitigating the spread of misinformation.
Category
Life Sciences
Enhancing the Public’s General Vaccine Knowledge Through a Comprehensive and User-friendly Website.
Less than a year since the World Health Organization first declared Covid-19 to be a global pandemic, The United States Food and Drug Administration has given authorization for the emergency use of three live-saving Covid-19 vaccines. With several vaccine candidates entering phase three clinical trials all over the world and more receiving approval for emergency use, questions continue to arise about how each vaccine works and what their effectiveness is at preventing Covid-19 illness. In fact, the pandemic has revealed a significant gap in the general public’s knowledge about the importance of all vaccines, not just the vaccines made to combat Covid-19.
To address the lack of vaccine education, I compiled information from peer-reviewed articles and webpages, including the World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control, into a written report. After being reviewed by an expert in vaccine immunology, I organized the written information into an easily accessible website. Of course, the internet has an abundance of resources about vaccines; however, finding appropriate information requires searching through countless websites that oversimplify the science or journal articles with complex scientific vocabulary. With this project, I intended to present material in a single location that was easier for the general public to comprehend than a chapter in a college textbook or an article in a scientific journal. The website contains descriptions of the cellular processes involved in building immunity when a patient receives a vaccine and explanations about the differences between vaccine types. Ultimately, my goal was to provide materials that would allow individuals to make informed decisions about vaccinations while also mitigating the spread of misinformation.