Over 100 healthcare workers at Dignity Health got their first dose of the Pfizer vaccine Tuesday
and last updated 2020-12-18 00:31:44-05
A shipment of the Pfizer vaccine arrived at Marian Regional Medical Center in Santa Maria on Tuesday. More than 100 hospital workers were vaccinated at three different Dignity Health locations.
Healthcare workers say they were waiting anxiously for this vaccine.
âWe ve been waiting a long time for it to come and I encourage anyone, everyone to take the vaccine because we got to stop this pandemic some kind of way,â said Fay Robinson, Unit Clerk Monitor Observer.
Robinson was one of the first healthcare workers at Marian Regional to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, including Medical Director of Infectious Disease Dr. J Ritter.
Laura Place
âPeople should absolutely take this vaccine,â Pierce said. âThere will be side effects. The greater good is served if as many people as possible get this vaccine. I wanted to be right up there. It helps me feel very safe working in a hospital with COVID patients.â
Other nursing and medical staff also helped administer the vaccines, which were managed and prepared by the hospital s pharmacy department under the guidance of Director of Pharmacy Services Sarah Osellame, a hospital spokeswoman said.
The hospital is following guidelines and recommendations informed by state, national and county agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and state and county health officers, the spokeswoman said, noting that vaccine manufacturer protocols for storage, handling and administration of the COVID-19 vaccine also are being followed.
As Santa Barbara County and the state experience a surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations this winter, leaders at local hospitals are gaining a clearer understanding of the virus and what contributes to severity of the disease as they prepare for the arrival of vaccines.Â
At Marian Regional Medical Center in Santa Maria, which maintains substantial ICU capacity and personal protective equipment for the time being, staff expect to receive approximately 1,900 doses from Pfizer to begin vaccinating the first round of Marian s 3,200 health care workers next week.Â
To discuss the vaccine process, ICU capacity and what doctors are learning about local COVID-19 patients, the Santa Maria Times spoke with top medical officials from Marian Regional, who also work for neighboring Dignity Health sites French Hospital Medical Center and Arroyo Grande Community Hospital.Â