KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — New Directions Healthcare Solutions held a clinic in Montgomery Village in South Knoxville Saturday, offering the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to adolescents and adults who hadn't received a shot yet.
The group, which is sponsored by the Faith Leaders Church Initiative, is reaching out to different parts of the community each week.
Dr. Cynthia Finch said their mission is critical to ensure all communities are able to have the opportunity to receive the vaccine as new vaccination rates locally and across the the state dwindle.
In Tennessee, roughly 33% of people are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 -- which is below the national average of 39% and only halfway to what experts believe will be the threshold for achieving public herd immunity against the virus. Tennessee continues to lag behind the nation in vaccinations, ranking 45th out of all 50 states when it comes to the percentage of people fully vaccinated.
Many of Tennessee's rural counties are reporting the highest levels of vaccine hesitancy in the state, however, cities like Memphis and some counties within the greater Nashville region have seen issues with below-average vaccination rates. Knox County is reporting 39% of all residents are fully vaccinated -- which is right at the national average.
Experts say the problems they are seeing across cities are not people refusing to get the vaccine, but rather are issues with people obtaining easy access to it.
"We are committed to making sure that people have access to this vaccine. It's not about insistency anymore. It's about access," Finch said. "So we have created access by going to the people to the neighborhood."
The organization will be back in Montgomery Village in three weeks on June 12 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to ensure those who received a vaccine Saturday get their second dose.
The organization will be offering other first-dose vaccine clinics through June, as well as an educational session to address vaccine hesitancy in the community.
The next first-dose Pfizer vaccine clinic is scheduled for Saturday, June 26 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Foster Chapel Baptist Church at 4012 Oakland Drive in Knoxville.
The organization will also hold first and second-dose clinics with both the Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines every Monday starting June 7 at the East Knoxville Free Medical Clinic/Magnolia Avenue UMC at 2700 East Magnolia Avenue. Those Monday clinics will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. through June 28.
For more information contact Vivian Shipe at (865) 617-8353 or Cynthia Finch at (865) 254-4793.
The FDA on May 10 authorized the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for adolescents ages 12 and up following clinical trials that showed the vaccine had similar efficacy and side effects for that age group as it did young adults.
Even though young teens and children are less likely to develop serious symptoms from COVID-19 compared to adults, they can still spread the virus to others -- even if they are asymptomatic. For this reason, the CDC is recommending parents to have their children vaccinated in order to limit the spread of the virus and hasten herd immunity.