As kids, it was recommended that we all get vaccinated so we could grow up to become healthy adults. Yet now that we are adults, you might be thinking that those immunizations at the doctor’s office have gone the way of training wheels and spelling tests.

Adulthood is no time to let down your guard where vaccines are concerned. Christine Hallenbeck Ask is the Director of Mission Integration and Senior Pastor with the Good Samaritan Society. Andrea Polkinghorn is the Lead Immunization Strategist with Sanford Heath. And Natasha Smith in Sanford Health’s Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion.

They joined us to tell us more about an effort to increase the availability of vaccines for adults, especially for older adults and people with disabilities who haven’t always gotten the message or the access to get the shots they need to age healthfully.

A major priority of this work involves addressing barriers to accessing vaccinations, especially for immigrants; refugees; people with disabilities, as well as Black, Indigenous, and people of color would not be possible without these partners in the program: South Dakota Voices for Peace, the City of Sioux Falls, and Employment Disability Resources who are helping guide this work to access more people in our community.