A necessary vaccination for female college students is being offered free of charge to Ohio University students willing to participate in a new study.
Ohio State University is partnering with researchers from the University of Michigan to conduct several studies aimed at understanding high cervical cancer rates in Appalachian Ohio and West Virginia, according to a press release.
Nita Williams, a clinical researcher at OSU, said the university is using grant money from the National Institutes of Health to administer the Gardasil vaccine — a preventative vaccination for human papilloma virus — and Pap smears to female students in southern and southeastern Ohio.
Results from the Pap smear will be used for research only and will not be disclosed to the participants, Williams said.
“The purpose of this is to understand how stress in everyday life affects your body’s immune response to the HPV vaccine,” Williams said.
Female participants must be between 18 and 26 years old, cannot be pregnant and cannot have a history of cervical cancer.
The study, Williams said, will be an ongoing endeavor for the researchers.
“We anticipate that we’ll be recruiting for another year or so until we reach our ultimate study goal,” Williams said.
Recruitment officially began Nov. 30. Students can enroll at multiple locations including those located in Logan, Pomeroy, Gallipolis and Chillicothe.
At OU, students can enroll at the Heritage Community Clinic in Grosvenor Hall. The testing will be conducted at Campus Care toward the end of April, Williams said. The exact date is still pending.
Tonya Burdette, director at Campus Care, said the student health center opted to allow testing at the center because they feel it’s important to student health.
“(HPV) is a common virus and people need to understand it,” Burdette said. “And also, it’s really expensive. Most insurance companies don’t cover the vaccine. It’s preventative.”
The Gardasil vaccine typically cashes in at $198 per shot, said Karen Robinson, nursing supervisor at Campus Care, adding that it is administered in a series of three shots.
“They’re just using our space,” Burdette said. “They’re the ones doing the shots, the testing and everything.”
In addition to HPV vaccination, Campus Care will continue to offer free and anonymous HIV testing to students.
Lauren Mente, a graduate student studying nursing and public health and the senator for the College of Health Sciences and Professions, said the free HIV testing offered at Campus Care is an important service.
Additionally, Mente said GSS is currently working to improve student insurance coverage for STI testing.
“This is a step to really improving the services that are offered here at OU,” Mente said.
sg409809@ohiou.edu
