Phoebe ready to begin first round of vaccinations for COVID-19

ALBANY — With the arrival of the first batch of a vaccine for the novel coronavirus anticipated, the Phoebe Putney Health System is prepared and raring to go in the next phase of the battle against the disease.

The system’s three hospitals — in Albany, Americus and Sylvester — have been equipped with the cold-storage equipment needed to store doses at the frigid 94 degrees below zero and is poised to be a vaccination center for the region.

“We’re one of the few in the state that has that,” said Ben Roberts, Phoebe’s director of public relations and communications. “We’ve been ready since Saturday. We are anxiously waiting.”

As of Tuesday, the health system had not received word of when the first shipment will arrive and how many doses it will receive.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday approved the vaccine produced by Pfizer for emergency use, which allows the unrolling of the first round of vaccinations.

Health care workers will be the focus initially for Phoebe in the first round of vaccinations.

Under Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, the first phase of the COVID-19 vaccination program will target health care workers, first responders and residents of assisted-living facilities such as nursing homes. The state of Georgia will be responsible for the nursing homes and assisted living facilities.

“Our Vaccine Planning Team developed a tiered approach to Phase 1 vaccinations,” Dr. Dianna Grant, the Phoebe Health System’s chief medical officer, said. “That group includes more than just doctors and nurses. Environmental services workers, registrars, respiratory therapists, anyone who may come in contact with patients in those high-risk areas are also eligible to receive the vaccine right away.”

The Environmental Services Department includes workers involved in cleaning and janitorial services, Roberts said.

Dr. James Black, director of emergency medical services, will be one of the first to receive a vaccination, partially to show his confidence in the safety of the product.

“While I would be happy to let all my co-workers in the Emergency Department go to the front of the line and receive my vaccine after them, it is important for me to set an example,” Black said. “This vaccine has been proven to be safe and effective, and I have no worries about rolling up my sleeve to take the shot. I will urge all my team members in the ER to do the same, and I encourage everyone in southwest Georgia to get the vaccine when it is available to the wider public.”

With only 100 million doses received in the initial shipment in the United States, it could be some time before the vaccination program covers much of the nation’s population. The Pfizer vaccine requires two separate shots, spaced a few weeks apart, so that amount will cover 50 million people.

There are other vaccines in various stages of the development and approval processes that could be available later.

In the meantime, it is up to people to continue the protection measures that have been the case for months, including social distancing and wearing face coverings in public to help prevent the spread of the virus.

Cases and deaths are surging across the country, and Phoebe has seen the number of patients hospitalized for treatment of COVID-19 increase from the low- to mid-20s a few weeks ago to 48 last week and 63 in Albany on Tuesday morning, Roberts said. There were eight patients in the hospital at Phoebe Sumter Medical Center on Monday.

As the vaccines become more readily available to the wider public, Phoebe is poised to step up its program and has been planning toward that goal for some time.

Tier 2 of Phase 1 will include health care workers at medium risk of exposure, such as primary care providers and those who work in outpatient clinics and will include non-Phoebe providers in the community.

“While Phoebe will administer the vaccines, they are not just for us,” Phoebe CEO Scott Steiner said. “We will certainly take care of the Phoebe Family, but we will also protect our community. We have a responsibility to administer vaccines equitably throughout our region, and we take that responsibility seriously.

“As the leading health care provider in the region of the state hardest hit by COVID-19 in the early days of the pandemic, we were determined to be ready to administer vaccines as soon as they are available. Through extensive vaccination planning and preparations, we are ready, and we look forward to leading a successful effort to protect members of the Phoebe Family and people throughout the communities we serve from COVID-19.”