Technological higher education institutions prepared to assist in vaccination roll-out plans as vaccination centres open in two institutions
THEA member institutions have campuses across fifteen counties and are ideally placed to assist HSE and Government through its High-Level Task Force in the vaccination roll-out logistics. All THEA member institutions have offered further assistance to Government and many institutional leadership teams are already in talks with Government around how campus facilities, teams, and expertise can be best used in order to help to accelerate the delivery of vaccines to all population groups. The decision in respect of the requirement in any given location will ultimately lie with the HSE. The first of our mass vaccination centres opened yesterday, 10 February, in IT Sligo Knocknarea Arena for frontline health workers. The Melbourn Examination Centre at MTU has also been secured for the HSE as a Vaccination Centre for at least the next three months. Other discussions with HSE are ongoing
All of the THEA member institutions contributed significantly to the national effort during the first wave of the public health crisis in early 2020. Examples of assistance included:
- Production of PPE
- Donation of campus infrastructure for testing facilities and laboratories
- Research and development expertise
- Development of sanitising products
- Development and production of emergency ventilation equipment
- Personnel to support frontline activities
Further examples can be found here: covid-19-helping/
Dr Joseph Ryan, CEO of THEA stated: “Our institutions are geographically dispersed throughout Ireland with campus facilities across the country. The applied nature of our teaching and learning places us at a distinct advantage in contributing to the national effort in combating the effects of COVID 19 through the donation of facilities, expertise, research and development, laboratories, and infrastructure.
“Most of our institutions are already in discussions with Government and HSE in order best to establish how they can contribute to the national vaccination effort and work is underway in a number of institutions to create vaccination centres which will be formally announced in the coming weeks. We are delighted to see the first centres open already in IT Sligo and in MTU and wish our colleagues well in their contributions to the national vaccination efforts.
“We look forward to continuing to support the national public health effort as we move through the vaccination roll-out.”
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For more information please contact:
Róisín O’Connell, Head of Communications, THEA: (087) 9193333; roisin.oconnell@thea.ie
