Report on the Completion of the All-Keio University Workplace Vaccination Program

2021/11/09

As of September 15, 2021, the workplace vaccination program at Keio University has concluded. Over a total of 58 days, 98,026 doses were administered to 49,320 individuals. This report provides an overview of the program.

On May 31, three days after President Kohei Itoh took office, the government announced a plan for workplace vaccinations for COVID-19 targeting companies and universities. This was a policy by the government to strongly promote vaccination, including for young people who had not yet been issued vaccination vouchers. Consequently, vaccines manufactured by Moderna were to be supplied based on applications from organizations that could verify vaccination history using reliable rosters. Driven by President Itoh's strong desire to "reclaim the campus life of Keio students that was taken away by the COVID-19 pandemic and to restore the future of students at large," we decided to conduct workplace vaccinations at Keio University.

Vaccination is voluntary and based on individual choice, and while it cannot solve everything on its own, we believed it would be a major step toward restoring university functions for the fall semester and the 2022 academic year. However, it was expected that approximately 50,000 people would be eligible, including students in the correspondence courses, faculty and staff (including part-time) and their cohabiting family members, campus-related personnel, and other university students requested by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT).

At the time, Keio University Hospital was responsible for treating COVID-19 patients, administering vaccinations to Shinjuku City residents, and providing emergency medical care centered around the main stadium for Tokyo 2020. It was virtually impossible for hospital staff alone to vaccinate 50,000 people. However, at this moment, medical professionals associated with Keio—including basic researchers from the School of Medicine, Sanshikai, Keio-affiliated hospitals, the Faculty of Nursing and Medical Care, Kobaikai, the Faculty of Pharmacy, and the KP-kai—immediately reached out to support Keio students, allowing us to make an immediate decision.

Vaccination programs cannot be executed smoothly by medical professionals alone. Administrative staff from the Mita Campus and other departments moved instantly, and a vaccination system was built in no time through the unified support of the Keio Gijuku Shachu. When we applied to MEXT for the vaccine supply, we were pleasantly surprised to find that the ITC Headquarters had already built a very high-quality reservation system.

The South School Building on the Mita Campus was chosen as the venue, partly because it is close to Shinanomachi and the Shiba-Kyoritsu Campus, and because Saiseikai Central Hospital, one of our affiliated hospitals, agreed to handle emergency medical care in case of any incidents. Members of the hospital's Center for Infectious Disease and Infection Control, who were well-versed in the challenges after vaccinating approximately 4,500 medical workers at the Shinanomachi Campus, along with the Health Management Center at Mita and the Office of Facilities and Property Management, created an ideal layout for the venue. The Administrative Affairs Office maintained close coordination with relevant ministries. The Office of Student Services actively used its network to reach out to other universities in need of vaccinations. Furthermore, a reservation center was established and a vaccination portal site was launched to provide comprehensive information and handle bookings. I truly felt the underlying strength and gratitude of the Keio Gijuku Shachu when it comes together as one.

On June 7, we announced the implementation of workplace vaccinations, and on the 9th, President Itoh released a video message to Keio students, carefully explaining the significance of the all-university workplace vaccination program and future precautions. At that time, the government was flooded with unexpected applications for workplace vaccinations, leading to a rapid shortage of vaccine supply. While many workplace vaccinations planned at various universities and companies had no prospect of starting, Keio University was able to begin its program on June 21—the first day workplace vaccinations were permitted—as one of 17 universities nationwide. This was possible because the entire university worked as one to respond and apply extremely quickly.

In the mornings, 10 pharmacists and nurses focused on filling vaccine syringes, and from the afternoon, a team of 23 nurses and 11 doctors safely and smoothly administered 2,000 to 2,800 vaccinations per day. We prioritized safe administration above all else, deploying experienced lead doctors and lead nurses from Keio University Hospital every day to ensure a system that could respond perfectly to anyone feeling unwell. Throughout the period, six people were transported by ambulance and one required hospitalization for observation, but ultimately there were no serious health issues, and we believe that, overall, vaccinations were conducted safely.

Student ambassadors from the School of Medicine created vaccination experience stories and Q&As to answer the concerns of students of the same generation. Additionally, the Office of Communications and Public Relations provided real-time updates on reservations and vaccination status, which provided a sense of security and ultimately led to a vaccination rate of nearly 80% among students. Meanwhile, we aimed to "provide prompt and safe vaccinations to those who want them" while also sending messages to "prevent vaccine harassment" so that peer pressure would not be applied to those who did not wish to be vaccinated for various reasons.

Ultimately, in addition to approximately 35,000 people associated with Keio University, we were able to provide vaccinations to approximately 15,000 students from 44 other public and private universities, including those planning to study abroad who were required to be vaccinated by their host institutions, and medical students preparing for clinical clerkships. Many voices of gratitude have been sent to President Itoh, who led this initiative.

On August 26, just before the scheduled vaccinations were to end, reports surfaced regarding foreign matter contamination in the vaccines. Unfortunately, the affected lots had been supplied to Keio University as well. We suspended vaccinations to respond, but it was discovered that approximately 4,300 people had already been vaccinated from the affected lots.

At Keio University, pharmacists and nurses carefully fill the syringes while visually inspecting them, so we believe the possibility that a vaccine containing foreign matter was administered is extremely low. While unnecessary foreign substances should never enter the body, even if invisible levels of metal were injected into the muscle, the possibility of serious health damage is extremely low, and no health issues related to foreign matter contamination have been observed at this time.

An unexpectedly high vaccination rate was achieved at Keio University, and even during the fifth wave of infection that hit Japan, the number of infected individuals has been suppressed (see graph). Based on this data, for the fall semester, while following the infection prevention system of the spring semester, we plan to cautiously increase in-person classes and resume short-term study abroad programs of less than three months and student academic activities abroad, which had been suspended, under certain conditions.

Keeping in mind that infections may spread again depending on the trends of variant strains, we want to reclaim the campus life of Keio students while utilizing the various infection prevention measures we have learned. I would like to conclude this report by once again expressing my deepest gratitude for the efforts of everyone who supported this workplace vaccination program through the "All-Keio" system.