Huge shoutout to everyone, especially to the individuals listed below, who participated in the success of the recent monkeypox vaccination events.
| New Orleans: | Baton Rouge: |
| Don Evans | Marquise Turner, Community Health & Outreach Supervisor |
| Jan Mandani | Irena Knight |
| Jimmy Gale | Benjamin Harris |
| Jourdan Barnes | Shantell Graham |
| Sam Burgess |
There was also a successful monkeypox vaccine event at the Out of the Box LGBTQ+ Community Center in Baton Rouge on August 11th. Community members came out to hear a presentation about monkeypox from local experts and receive monkeypox and COVID vaccines. Big shout out to everyone who helped to make this event a resounding success!
Recap: New Orleans Monkeypox Vaccination Events
Jourdan Barnes, Community Engagement Coordinator
Lately it seems the only thing that has been more popular than Beyonce’s Renaissance album is the topic of monkeypox. With Louisiana having a confirmed 127 cases as of August 18, 2022, the demand for the monkeypox vaccination increases everyday. Clinics across the state have been working overtime to keep up with this flux of folks who’ve been requesting the vaccine but have not been able to keep up. Vaccine seekers were forced to call clinics repeatedly, travel out of their cities, and even falsely report exposures only to still not receive the monkeypox vaccine.
The Louisiana Department of Health recognized this outcry for resources and accessibility and collaborated with Covid-19 strike teams, LCMC, and other agencies to organize four vaccination events. Two of those being at prominent LGBTQ+ friendly bars in New Orleans: The Phoenix and The Page. The objective was to make sure resources were distributed equitably between white and black communities and to ensure everyone who is eligible had an opportunity to access care.
Between all four events we were able to vaccinate over 1300 people and 917 of those were from The Phoenix and The Page. We were also able to promote our Just Check campaign and encouraged people who were waiting in line to check potential sex partners for sores or lesions that could potentially be a monkeypox outbreak.
None of this would have been possible without the amazing teams at The Phoenix and The Page, SHHP staff, and LDH staff who stepped in to make everything run smoothly. Lastly, a huge shout out to Jimmy Gale, Community Mobilization Supervisor, for truly mobilizing communities and getting people out to get vaccinated. His hard work, dedication, and advocacy has set the tone for how aggressive we can be in preventing the spread of infectious diseases.
Photos by Jourdan Barnes