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Staffing Up For A Pandemic And Beyond: Utilizing A Prn Nursing Pool, Leyna Mashburn, James Watkins

Georgia Public Health Association Annual Meeting and Conference

The COVID-19 pandemic’s early vaccination stage required health department staff to work long, odd hours to accommodate the needs of Georgia residents. This presented a challenge since some health departments only have 2-3 full-time nurses. District 2 hired a pool of PRN nurses to cover significant gaps in workforce throughout multiple vaccination phases of the pandemic response. This additional workforce allowed District 2 to maximize number of vaccine doses given.

During later COVID vaccination phases (summer 2021 – present), PRNs allowed health departments to resume regular services alongside high vaccination capacity. With various funding sources, District 2 used the PRNs …