Newport Daily News
NEWPORT The joint vaccination center for Newport and Middletown residents over the age of 75 opened for the first time Saturday morning at the Community College of Rhode Island campus.
The clinic originally was scheduled for Friday, but the snowstorm postponed the opening.
Many of the 300 people who arrived for their scheduled appointments between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. at the Southern Aquidneck Island Vaccination Center praised how well organized the clinic was.
“It’s a community effort,” said Newport Deputy Fire Chief Harp Donnelly, the MedPOD commander. POD is an acronym for “point of distribution.”
Present were 20 Newport and Middletown firefighters and police officers, as well as 43 volunteers, Donnelly said.
NEW BEDFORD Following the holiday break, local hospitals find themselves in the middle of another surge as hospitalizations continue to increase.
As of Wednesday, Massachusetts Department of Health reports there are 2,200 patients hospitalized for COVID-19. There are 461 patients in intensive care units and 286 intubated patients.
In comparison to mid-December s numbers of 1,576 confirmed COVID-19 cases with 308 patients in the ICU and 162 intubated patients, the numbers are rapidly increasing.
This reflects on a local level. As of Thursday, Southcoast Hospitals have a total of 145 COVID-positive patient hospitalizations across the system. Charlton Memorial in Fall River is reported to have 64 patients, six of which are ventilated; St. Luke s in New Bedford has 75 patients, 13 of which are ventilated; and Tobey in Wareham has six patients, one is ventilated. There is a total of 25 patients under investigation (PUI) with six at Charlton, 12 at St. Luke s, and six at Tobey
NEW BEDFORD After serving Southcoast Health for three years, North American Partners in Anesthesia will not have its contract renewed, causing a stir among current and former health care workers.
In May 2018, NAPA replaced the former anesthesia group, Anesthesia Associates of Massachusetts, which is now disbanded. AAM s contract employees served Southcoast Health medical facilities for 20 years. Critics say NAPA made promises to President Keith Hovan that it didn t keep. Word had spread around the hospital that NAPA promised to cover all three of Southcoast Health s locations Tobey, St. Luke s, and Charlton for $1.8 million less than AAM while retaining 90% of existing staff. In total, the decision to switch from AAM to NAPA affected roughly 10 doctors and about 25 CRNAs at St. Luke s and a handful from Charlton. The Standard-Times was unable to access official contracts between Southcoast Hospitals and NAPA and AAM.
Barros was the first recipient in the Southcoast Hospitals community to receive the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine. After being chosen by his nursing manager Andrea Laliberte, he gratefully agreed to receive the vaccine the day the 1,950 doses arrived at Charlton. He said he has felt fine since the first dose of the vaccine with some initial soreness in his arm, which he expected from any vaccine. He said he experienced some fatigue, but his arm pain was relieved within 24 to 48 hours after vaccination. A few days later, I felt great, Barros said. I didn t have any symptoms.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, the Pfizer vaccine is distributed in two shots spaced 21 days apart. It is given in the muscle of the upper arm. The messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine has some common side effects, including pain, swelling and redness at the location of the vaccine injection, along with chills, tiredness and headache throughout the body. The CDC states these side effects may begin