OHSU Continues Efforts in COVID-19 Response and Vaccination Drive

As the state’s academic health center, Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) remains actively engaged with state and local public health authorities and health systems across the metro area to coordinate a regional response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Since January 2022, OHSU has extended its efforts to deploying COVID-19 vaccines, focusing on reaching difficult-to-access community members and underserved communities with vaccination drives.

Following the federal and state approvals for COVID-19 vaccinations for children from six months old, OHSU set up appointment-only vaccination services at Doernbecher Children’s Hospital, catering to the younger population’s immunization needs.

The mass vaccination clinics, once operational at locations like Portland International Airport and Oregon Convention Center since June 2021, have been vital in administering thousands of doses.

While responding proactively to contain the spread of SARS-CoV-2, OHSU has played a key role in providing COVID-19 testing across various sites, including drive-through testing facilities at Hillsboro, the Oregon Convention Center, and the Portland Expo Center.

To enhance patient care and logistics during the current surge, OHSU introduced a Centralized Transportation Center on February 1, 2022, streamlining patient movement between hospital buildings and clinics.

Healthcare workers at OHSU stress the importance of vaccination in combating the virus, with efforts continuously focused on providing comprehensive care for post-COVID symptoms and establishing protocols for long-term patient management.

OHSU’s dynamic research community launched an in-house COVID-19 testing lab in March 2020, showcasing collaborative efforts to support clinical needs and enhance testing capacity.