’Today marks a day of hope’ as COVID vaccinations begin with St. Joseph nurse, doctor
A registered nurse and doctor who have treated COVID-19 patients in the intensive care unit at St. Joseph were the first and second health care workers at the hospital to get the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine on Friday, Dec. 18 — a day celebrated as a new beginning in the fight against the pandemic.
Workers at the Bellingham hospital applauded after Agnes Kuc, a nurse in the hospital’s COVID unit, received the first shot.
Kuc said she was happy she was selected to be the first and felt hopeful that “we’re getting closer right now to the end of the pandemic.”
Dr. Raj Deol, a pulmonary intensivist who has led the treatment of COVID patients in the hospital’s ICU, received the second shot.
“It’s a miracle of science,” Deol said.
Kuc and Deol volunteered to get vaccinated. Their joy on Friday was tempered as they expressed heartbreak for those who have died in Whatcom County and elsewhere because of the virus that causes COVID-19.
PeaceHealth, which owns the hospital, received 975 doses of the vaccine this week. It was among the first in Washington state to do so, and is prioritizing health care workers like Kuc and Deol who directly care for COVID patients and face the highest risk.
“After many, many dark days of despair, today marks a day of hope,” said Dr. Sudhakar Karlapudi, chief medical officer for PeaceHealth Northwest prior to the first shots being given.
“Every day for the last 10 months, our caregivers have provided compassionate and exceptional care under very, very difficult circumstances,” Karlapudi said. “What our caregivers have done is beyond amazing. It truly is.”
It’s not yet known when widespread vaccination for the public will begin, although Washington Department of Health officials had previously said they hoped to have most state residents vaccinated by mid-summer, if all goes well.
The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, the first one available, is given in two doses, 21 days apart.
A total of 18 to 20 health care workers at St. Joseph hospital were to get the vaccine over two hours on Friday, a first day that Karlapudi described as a pilot of the logistics.
On Saturday, up to 100 workers are expected to be vaccinated, he said.
After they get a shot, workers will sit in a chair and be monitored for 15 minutes to see if they develop immediate side effects.
“Based on the data so far, 50% to 60% (of) people will get a headache and fatigue and those are symptoms that are indistinguishable from COVID,” Karlapudi said as he explained the need to carefully schedule vaccination for caregivers to balance staffing.
Kuc and Deol both reported feeling fine in the minutes after receiving their first dose.
“I feel confident that it’ll make me safe, my family, my co-workers,” Kuc said.
Deol urged others to get vaccinated.
“As compared to the risk of getting COVID-19, the vaccine is absolutely safe,” he said. ”I do sincerely hope that our community realizes how big of a miracle this vaccine is, and how important it is to take the vaccine and continue what we have been doing for just a few more months.”
That was a message repeated by Karlapudi.
“While we recognize that today is a day of hope and a new beginning, we cannot let our guard down,” Karlapudi said. “Our struggle with this pandemic continues. We have to do what we have done for the past 10 months to prevent the spread of the pandemic. We have to wash our hands. We have to maintain social distance. And we have to wear masks.”
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine on Dec. 12, for people age 16 and older.
The Scientific Safety Review Workgroup, which includes Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Colorado and California, has voted unanimously to recommend the vaccine for immediate use.
The vaccine is being offered first to frontline health workers as well as long-term care residents in the state. The state health department estimated that it will take until mid- to late-January to finish vaccinating these groups and begin offering the vaccine to the next eligible groups.
On Friday, Dec. 18, the FDA issued an emergency use authorization for a vaccine developed by Moderna — the second COVID-19 vaccine to be given the nod in the U.S. If the Moderna vaccine is recommended by the Scientific Safety Review Workgroup, the state health department has said, Washington should get about 183,800 doses of that vaccine by the end of December.
The Moderna vaccine also requires two doses, but 28 days apart.
On Friday, U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Everett, watched virtually as the first two hospital workers received the vaccine.
He thanked them, and other health care workers in Whatcom County, for their bravery and resilience over the last 10 months and talked about the work still to be done.
“These vaccines are, in fact, a legitimate light at the end of the tunnel for our region and for the country. But that tunnel is still very long and there’s still some work to do on pandemic relief and helping families, especially working families throughout the area,” Larsen said.
He also thanked taxpayers for funding Operation Warp Speed, to the tune of $10 billion, to fast-track COVID-19 vaccine development.
Whatcom County Executive Satpal Sidhu also hailed the steps but, like Karlapudi, urged residents to remain vigilant.
“This is the first small step down the long path to getting our community vaccinated. Studies have shown this vaccine to be very effective, and I will certainly get it when my turn comes,” Sidhu said. “In the meantime, we need to continue to make safe choices every day.”
This story was originally published December 18, 2020 at 10:44 AM.
