SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) - Few hospitals have been hit harder by the pandemic than San Jose's Regional Hospital where the intensive care unit is at full capacity.
Regional has now joined the growing ranks of hospitals that have a new weapon in the battle against COVID-19: a vaccine.
In a scene playing out at hospitals and skilled nursing centers across the region, the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine was administered Friday at Regional Medical Center in San Jose.
Emergency room manager Aimee Lopez Baena voluntarily rolled up her sleeve to receive the first vaccination.
Regional and its sister hospital Good Samaritan will share an initial allocation of 975 doses of the long-awaited vaccine.
While the pandemic is far from over, the symbolism of the first vaccinations was not lost on others, hospital staff, patients, and the community at large, who anxiously await their turn.
"We know that there is a lot of anxiety and especially when people know, hey the vaccine is inside the building, when ca we go. So our job is to make sure that in the safest and most effective manor, we move as many people through as possible," Kenneth West, C.O.O. at Regional Medical Center, said.
"This is a step forward, but we're trying to make sure that the frontline folk now are protected, so as we roll out further with more vaccines, we're ready to move it into the community," Dr. Tarannum Guller, Chief Medical Officer at Regional Medical Center, said.
The numbers fluctuate from day to day but all of Regional's 37 ICU beds were filled on Friday.
There are at least 90 people hospitalized with COVID-19.
Some patients have been transferred to Good Samaritan.
Regional Medical Center serves some of the zip codes hardest hit by the pandemic.
The latest surge of hospitalizations has stretched hospital resources across the region but the arrival of the vaccine will be a welcome boost to morale.
"It's a battle every day to keep morale up, but I have been impressed certainly by our teams here that they can be a little long in the tooth with the day starts but they roll up their sleeves and continue to provide the care that's needed," Dr. Paul Silka, emergency department, said.
"Christmas is unfortunately not gonna be what we all want it to be this year, but I can still find a tremendous amount of hope and joy and that we have the vaccine, and I really think that's one of the best Christmas presents any of us can get," Elizabeth Thurstone, COVID floor nurse, said.
Some hard-earned applause for nurse Baena after her vaccination and then back to the frontlines.
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from KRON4 https://ift.tt/2Wvt7Py
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