A new mobile health unit program is getting more vaccines in the arms of rural, Hispanic and other hard-to-reach populations in southern Arizona.

The Asthma & Airway Disease Research Center has revolutionized our scientific understanding of asthma and other respiratory diseases.

Whether they’re behind the scenes mixing vaccines or putting shots in patients’ arms, PharmD students are getting hands-on job training.

College of Nursing student Alexa Kingman and Sharon Hom, a clinical assistant professor, share their learning and teaching experiences during the pandemic.

"Everywhere we go, we take variants with us," said Dr. Shad Marvasti, director of public health, prevention and health promotion at the University of College of Medicine – Phoenix. "If anyone is infected with the variant in New York and the Midwest, any other part of the world, and they're coming to Phoenix, Sky Harbor, they're bringing the variant with them."

While the UA POD may be decommissioning at the end of June, the pandemic is not over. As health departments battle vaccine hesitancy, the College of Public Health’s Mobile Health Unit is working to increase access to the vaccine for communities of color, building on their work in providing preventative care for these communities. Dr. Cecilia Rosales, associate dean of community engagement and outreach, discusses the MOVE UP initiative.

A new study found that COVID-19 survivors have a higher risk of death and health problems. Researchers also found that doctors are using prescription opioids to manage symptoms experienced by those long haul survivors. "So, the COVID-19 virus itself is very insidious. It has an umbrella of effects, including respiration, nervous system, mental health effects, metabolic disorders. So some of them also result in excessive pain and headache and myalgia among these patients," said Dr. Rajesh Khanna, a professor and co-director at the Center for Chronic Pain and Addiction at the College of Medicine – Tucson.

While you may not think of sweat as a form of testing for health conditions, some researchers believe it could be as beneficial as routine bloodwork. One research team from the University of Arizona Health Sciences is working to find more evidence that molecules in sweat can provide information on your stress response levels, circulatory system, immune system, and nervous system.

White people have been vaccinated against COVID-19 at a higher rate than other racial or ethnic groups in Arizona, even though they have had the lowest overall rate of COVID-19 cases per capita during the pandemic. The misalignment is not caused by race alone, said Joe Gerald, an associate professor with the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health. "It's not race, per se, but rather the conditions and structural inequities that these groups face. Some of it may be, they may be more likely to live in an area where there's a health care provider shortage. That kind of thing. So, it may be unrealistic to expect them to ever catch up fully."

Thousands of New Mexico residents still haven’t registered to obtain coronavirus shots, though the state is among the leaders in the country in the percentage of those who have acquired them. Dr. Daniel Derksen, director of the University of Arizona's Center for Rural Health, said the vaccines are effective and carry little risk.