Vax & Snax - Successful Late-Night COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic

On August 20, the Ryerson Healthcare User Experience (HUE) Lab launched a successful community vaccination clinic.  The “Vax and Snax” collaboration partnered HUE with Sherbourne Health, the St. James Town Community Corner, and the St. James Town Catering Collective.  Healthcare workers from Sherbourne Health administered over 110 COVID-19 vaccine doses in an evening event featuring delicious snacks, music and healthcare.  This event’s success highlights the importance of community partnerships and innovation in in public health outreach.

Funded by a Public Health Agency of Canada grant, the HUE Lab’s goal for the Vax and Snax event was to redefine community health spaces, and show that good food can be a key feature in removing barriers to accessing health care.  Considerable social media outreach on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, and the open access environment for both the vaccination and snacks, showed that healthcare delivery does not have to be scary, stigmatizing, or limited to clinical settings. 

At a time when neighbourhood vaccination rates were flagging, the event was a huge success for the St James Town community, and showed the importance of innovation and creativity in our approaches to healthcare. Thank you to all staff, volunteers, and organizations involved in making this event successful. This event was truly a community effort, and a great example of how the creativity in the HUE Lab can make healthcare better for patients, and practitioners. The next Vax and Snax Clinic will take place September 17th, 2021 offering participants the opportunity to return for their second dose.  

For mor information on the HUE Lab visit https://www.torontomu.ca/healthcare-user-experience-lab/ , or find us on Instagram @RUHUELab, Twitter @RUHUELab, Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/company/healthcare-user-experience (external link)  , Facebook @RUHUELab.