PITTSFIELD â More than 1,000 health care workers have been vaccinated across the county, as Berkshire Health Systems speeds through its first allocated doses.
The hospital system plans to finish its first shipment by the end of day Wednesday, just one week after the vaccine arrived, according to spokesperson Michael Leary.
Hospital officials do not know when its second shipment will arrive and whether BHS might be impacted by Gov. Charlie Bakerâs announcement that the state will receive 20 percent fewer doses from the federal government than expected. Leary said it also is unclear whether the second shipment will contain the Pfizer vaccine or the newly approved Moderna vaccine.
GREAT BARRINGTON â There was that birthday party in Pittsfield, the flag football games in Adams and a few âlarge gatheringsâ that set off a sizable volume of coronavirus infections in Pittsfield last month and trickled down to South County.
And there were other, more subtle exposures. One out-of-state visitor passed on what one Berkshire County public health official said appeared to be a different, mean strain of the virus that made âone group of women extremely sick.â
Leslie Drager, public health nurse for 20 Berkshire towns, said most symptoms she has seen have been mild â cold and allergylike â until that group surfaced on her radar.
HILLCREST DEATHS: The number of residents killed by the coronavirus inside the Hillcrest Commons Nursing & Rehabilitation Center has hit 40. Lisa Gaudet, a spokeswoman for the centerâs owner, Berkshire Healthcare Systems, said that as of Friday, Hillcrest had lost 40 residents. It reports that 15 residents are positive, with 106 resident having recovered. Of staff, 18 are positive and 59 have recovered.
At Kimball Farms Nursing Care Center in Lenox, also owned by Berkshire Healthcare, 15 residents have died. As of Friday, 14 residents were positive for COVID-19 and 24 had recovered, according to Gaudet. Seven staff at Kimball Farms are positive and eight have recovered.
Meantime, cases have been rising at Williamstown Commons, which saw 24 deaths last spring. As of Friday, that nursing center had 22 active cases among residents and one among staff. No one has died of the disease there amid the recent surge in cases.
BHS to begin staff vaccinations Thursday; nursing homes to follow this month berkshireeagle.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from berkshireeagle.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
A shot in the arm to Berkshire Health Systems staff starting tomorrow
The first shipment of vaccines arrived at Berkshire Medical Center today according to and article in The Berkshire Eagle. The Eagle reports 1,950 doses of the Pfizer vaccine were received today, a day later than expected. No reason was given for the delay. Tomorrow is the first day of scheduled vaccinations.
The plan is for Berkshire Health Systems (BHS) to administer the first doses to health workers that work directly with Covid-19 infected patients, emergency room workers and intensive care staff. BHS owns a number of health care facilities in Berkshire County as well as BMC Hospital in Pittsfield and Fairview Hospital in Great Barrington.