Dr. Arora is a researcher in the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health with over 16 years of experience as a public health emergency preparedness planner and trainer. This work found her collaborating and working closely with state, county, and tribal public health partners to develop and exercise emergency plans aimed at building response capacity for both natural disasters and pandemics.
As the COVID-19 pandemic gripped the world in the spring of 2020, Dr. Arora became involved in the University of Arizona’s Campus Incident Command team to inform the planning and response. Currently she serves as the Co-Chair of the COVID-19 Vaccination Taskforce and the Public Health Officer at the University of Arizona State Point of Dispensing (POD). Her work on-site focuses on bringing the public health lens to the vaccination clinic through staff training and education, strategic planning, program implementation and evaluation.
Dr. Arora feels that equity is a critical facet to the University of Arizona POD. To address this need, Dr. Arora serves on the Pima County Health Department’s Vaccine Equity Committee, which “monitors vaccination metrics and collaborates with community partners to address the challenges in vaccine registration, transportation, etc.” The group looks at equity from two perspectives: the first perspective is ensuring equity in public access to information, such as making sure registration is accessible and individuals who want a vaccine are able to schedule an appointment and get to a vaccine clinic. The second perspective involves equity in vaccine access at vaccine locations, such as making sure that the once individuals arrive at the clinic, the site is accessible for people with disabilities, Spanish translation is available, etc. “Our POD has taken a wholistic view of equity and by involving different subject matter experts and community partners, we have been able to make strides.”
The UArizona POD is also rare in that it operates both a sit-down facility to accommodate individuals with disabilities or those using public transportation, as well as a drive-through site. This, however, is not by accident: Over a decade ago, the UArizona leadership activated what is now called the Campus Incident Response Team that focuses on both pandemic and mass dispensing planning. Thankfully, these plans have largely informed the premise of our campus response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Planning, collaboration, and coordination are key elements of an effective response – elements which Dr. Arora stresses often in the courses she teaches on public health emergency preparedness and climate change. “The challenges before us are complex and daunting. Whether it is a pandemic, extreme heat, or natural disasters—multi-sectoral, interdisciplinary collaboration and partnerships are critical. There is no one discipline or profession that can deal with these complex societal problems; but we can learn from our experiences and mobilize collectively—government, private, non-profit, academia, and community if we are to mitigate adverse consequences.”
