WBBJ TV
May 26, 2021
Jackson Madison County Regional Health Department continues to increase the COVID vaccination eligibility.
The hospital held their first vaccination clinic for the new age group Wednesday with the Pfizer vaccine.
Employee health manager for West Tennessee Healthcare, Allison Wright, said they are excited to start vaccinating children in the community.
“We are really excited to start to get our children and adolescents vaccinated because we have done over 20,000 vaccines here for our healthcare workers and our employees out in the community. We are excited to now lower that and get them vaccinated as well,” Wright said.
The clinic was open from 4:00 to 8:30 Wednesday evening with about 100 people already signed up to get the vaccine.
Active COVID-19 cases in Madison County continue to rise following Christmas and the new year, local health officials reported Wednesday.
The county reported 2,534 active or unknown cases Wednesday, a 40% increase since the new year. Jackson-Madison County Regional Health Department executive director Kim Tedford warned the county could see record-high active counts following the holiday season. We are seeing that increase [right now], she said during Wednesday s COVID-19 media briefing.
Despite the rising active cases, Jackson-Madison County General Hospital reported a decrease in coronavirus-related hospitalizations. At one point in December, the hospital said it was treating close to 200 patients for coronavirus.
Nearly one-third of Jackson-Madison County General Hospital s patients are there due to the coronavirus.
The hospital reported treating 189 COVID-19 patients Wednesday, 34 of whom it considers to be in the recovering stage of infection. The total sets a new COVID-19 hospitalization high for the facility.
Tina Prescott, the COO of West Tennessee Healthcare, said the hospital is still trying to limit the number of patients it receives as its census nears capacity. We monitor it on a case-by-case basis, Prescott added. But our hospital is not open to those already in another facility because of the volume and census of patients coming in through our emergency department.
WBBJ TV
December 21, 2020
JACKSON, Tenn. The Jackson-Madison County Regional Health Department received the first doses of the Moderna vaccine this morning.
“I’ve been frustrated, worried, scared, downright angry at the world on how they acted over this,” said Wayne Arnold, regional hospital director for the health department. “For the first time, I feel hopeful.”
On Monday, Arnold was the first person at the Jackson-Madison County Regional Health Department to receive the Moderna vaccine.
The first shipment arrived Monday, just days after healthcare workers received the first doses of the Pfizer vaccine at Jackson-Madison County General Hospital.
Healthcare workers and first responders are slated to be the first to receive these vaccinations.