Pacific Blue Cross proud to support Kids Boost Immunity to advance public health in B.C. and beyond

BURNABY, British Columbia, April 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- To kick off National Immunization Awareness Week, Pacific Blue Cross has partnered with the BCCDC Foundation for Public Health to support the federal launch of the Kids Boost Immunity (KBI) program in schools across British Columbia to raise literacy about immunization and as a way for students to give back globally.

KBI is a new online educational website where B.C. students in Science 8 and Social Studies 6 learn and earn by taking online quizzes based on the school curriculum, and are awarded with vaccines purchased through UNICEF Canada to immunize children globally. The more questions a student answers correctly, the more vaccines they earn for UNICEF.

“Pacific Blue Cross is excited to support the Kids Boost Immunity initiative,” says Anar Dossa, Director of Pharmacy Services, Pacific Blue Cross. “It is important that youth have a basic understanding of immunization, and how it affects them personally and others around the world. The program makes learning fun and gives students purpose, all while helping them learn the school curriculum.”

Students can access KBI using any device connected to the internet such as a laptop, desktop computer or their own smart phone. KBI incorporates videos, stories and articles that cover topics such as how the immune system and vaccines work, the history of vaccination, and epidemic and pandemic responses to global outbreaks.

Other features of KBI include a class leaderboard that displays how many vaccines students and classes are earning in real-time, awards online badges to students and challenges other schools to make learning fun.

KBI is a Canadian vaccine education and advocacy platform made possible through a partnership between the Public Health Association of British Columbia, the BC Ministry of Health and the Public Health Agency of Canada. KBI is managed with assistance from the BC Centre for Disease Control with support from the BCCDC Foundation for Public Health, including the Pacific Blue Cross Health Foundation.

Sign your school up to participate in KBI: www.kidsboostimmunity.com

About Pacific Blue Cross

Pacific Blue Cross is British Columbia’s number one health benefits provider. Based in Burnaby, B.C., the not-for-profit organization provides health, dental, life, disability and travel coverage for 1 in 3 British Columbians through group benefits and individual plans. As part of its mission to improve health and wellbeing in B.C., Pacific Blue Cross proactively supports charitable organizations across the province working to improve health outcomes.

About the BCCDC Foundation for Public Health

The BCCDC Foundation for Public Health is proud to support Kids Boost Immunity by bringing together partners such as Pacific Blue Cross to provide funding and other resources to help grow and sustain this innovative initiative. The BCCDC Foundation works in partnership with the BC Centre for Disease Control to foster the development of key partnerships and collaborations that will result in the advancement of public health in BC and beyond.

Media contact:

Anne Williams Companies
Manager, Communications & Community
Pacific Blue Cross
amwilliams@pac.bluecross.ca