On the morning of Tuesday, Dec. 22, Verde Valley Medical Center began its process of vaccinating healthcare staff with a COVID-19 vaccine developed by the Moderna pharmaceutical company, the first vaccinations in the Verde Valley.
Radiology tech Erin Gaff was the first to be vaccinated at VVMC, followed shortly by nurse Dave Betz, and Drs. Doug Mapel and Kristina Kezar. According to hospital administrators, the hospital has purchased 500 vaccine doses for their first wave of inoculations, with the expectation of purchasing more in the near future.
“We go into every room in this hospital and we have to be on the front lines,” Gaff said. “I’m just really excited to get this done because we’re just scared every time we have to go in and out of every room. It’s just exciting to feel protected.”
The hospital is prioritizing its frontline health workers who have worked directly with COVID-19 patients in the hospital since the beginning of the pandemic, but is expecting to make it available to the rest as soon as possible.
Hospital workers are classified by the Arizona Department of Health Services as Phase 1A, meaning they are the first in line for the vaccine. They are joined by staff and residents at assisted living and nursing homes, as well as developmental disability home residents.
Phase 1B includes shelter residents as well as essential workers in fields including education and childcare, food production and distribution, power and utility, transportation, and state and local government providing critical services, but is not expected to begin receiving vaccines until at least February.
“We are going to be going to be going full-steam ahead on this and vaccinating our staff not just once but twice over the next month plus,” Northern Arizona Healthcare Chief Quality Officer John Mougin said. “We look forward to getting through this along with you all, and eventually we’ll have it available to essential workers as well as high risk patients, and lastly to the community at large.”
The Moderna vaccine was initially developed in January of 2020, but had to undergo months of multi-phase testing in order to determine its efficacy — estimated at 94.1% immunity — and side effects, which seem to be limited to potential fever, headache, and fatigue that last under 48 hours — far milder than getting the virus in most cases. On Friday, Dec. 18, the Food and Drug Administration voted to approve Moderna’s vaccine for Emergency Use Authorization, allowing it to be shipped starting this weekend. Yavapai County expects to receive more than 3,000 doses this week, which will begin being administered to local nursing homes in addition to healthcare workers.
“I’m absolutely thrilled to get this done,” Betz said. “It feels like we have something actually effective to start turning this thing around. We can see some light at the end of the tunnel.”
Health care administrators continue to warn about the spread of the virus in the community, even as the beginning of vaccinations suggests that the worst phase may be approaching its close. In the week from Friday, Dec. 11 through Friday, Dec. 18, the Verde Valley had 378 new COVID-19 cases and four deaths, not quite as bad as the worst week shortly after Thanksgiving. 1.2% of Yavapai County has tested positive for the virus in the past two weeks alone.
“This is a great way to end the year,” Kezar said. “What a Christmas gift for me — the safety of my family, and the community, so I’m ecstatic.”
