The Stark County Health Department & Beacon Charitable Pharmacy partner with the Ohio Department of Health to host an outreach event for students, facility, & the community on Thursday, September 8th from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at Kent State University at Stark.
(Jackson Twp., OH) – This event is located at 6000 Frank Ave NW. in North Canton. The event will offer the campus and community members resources, education, and a chance to be up-to-date on their COVID-19 vaccines which will include the new bivalent booster dose. The updated vaccine is a bivalent formula that both boosts immunity against the original coronavirus strain and also protects against the newer Omicron variants that account for most of the current cases.
These vaccines will be provided through the Ohio Department of Health’s Mobile Unit through Matrix Medical Network. In addition, the Matrix Core 4 health assessment program will be available providing blood sugar, blood pressure, BMI and cholesterol screenings onsite.
“Our health department is exited to bring not only the Matrix mobile vaccine unit to this but the addition of health screenings that provide a good snapshot of health risks and helps determine if participants are at risk for serious health conditions,” said Director of Administration and Support Services Kay Conley, MPA, CHES.
“Our health department will provide free sanitizer, boxes of masks, COVID test kits, and other health related information about our programs and services.”
Beacon Charitable Pharmacy will be providing vaccine education and prescription medication assistance during the event. They will also be distributing Narcan kits to prevent drug overdoses.
“Community members often don’t know where to get help with the cost of their prescription medication. They’re also unsure who they can trust about COVID-19 and flu vaccines. We are excited to bring pharmacy expertise to this important community event,” said Executive Director of Beacon Charitable Pharmacy Carol Risaliti.
The Ohio Department of Health will be offering first, second, and the bivalent booster doses, of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines in their mobile unit. Attendees ages 5 years of age or older can receive their first or second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Those attendees 12 years of age and older can receive the Pfizer bivalent booster dose. Moderna will also be available to those 18 years of age and older looking to receive a first, second or the bivalent booster dose.
The Stark County Combined General Health District (Stark County Health Department) was founded in 1920 and is celebrating a century of health. The department is currently the ninth largest health district in the State of Ohio which serves the public health needs of over 250,000 people. The jurisdiction of the Stark County District is that of the 17 Townships, 12 Villages, and the cities of Louisville, North Canton, and Canal Fulton. The mission of the department is to assess, protect, promote, and improve the health of Stark County through leadership, quality service, and community partnerships.
