The first Ohioans to be injected with a coronavirus vaccine received their second dose of the shot this week, capping a yearlong sprint from the first case of COVID-19 to an inoculation that could end the worst pandemic in more than a century.
Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center administered the booster COVID-19 shots to frontline workers Tuesday at the school's East Hospital.
Tables lined a room at the hospital's Talbot Hall, where Ohio State employees arrived with their vaccination cards. Green signs marked tables where workers could sit for their shot while red signs with the words "COVID-19 warrior in training" marked areas where employees were being monitored for side effects 15 minutes after being injected.
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Although booster shots were met with far less fanfare than the first ones administered Dec. 14, medical workers said they were excited to get the second shot that trials have shown could offer up to 95% protection against the virus.
"I feel like this is the first step to hopefully going back to a normal life," said Dr. Meena Khan, a neurologist. "I'm glad that we're able to get this, and hopefully the public will be able to have access to it soon as well."
The Food and Drug Administration has approved two vaccines on an emergency basis.
The first was one from drugmaker Pfizer and the second was from Massachusetts-based Moderna. Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca are expected to apply for emergency approval in the coming months for their own vaccine candidates.
Though a growing number have criticized the national vaccine rollout as sluggish, Ohio State moved to vaccinate as many workers as possible right away, said Dr. Nicholas Kman, who works in the medical center's emergency department. The first 975 doses of the Pfizer vaccine the medical center received in mid-December were gone the same week they arrived, said Kman, who received his booster dose Tuesday.
Kman estimated that Ohio State is currently vaccinating around 1,000 people a day.
"The governor is really leaning on everyone to increase the urgency of getting these vaccines out. So we've added appointments this week, we've invited our health sciences students, and others are all getting invited this week," Kman said. "So we're really getting through our list pretty quickly."
As the COVID-19 vaccine has been offered up to more frontline workers, nursing home employees have hesitated to get the shot. About 60% of Ohio's nursing home staff have so far elected not to take the vaccine, Gov. Mike DeWine said on Dec. 30.
The issue of hesitancy emerged long before a COVID-19 vaccine was ever cleared by the FDA.
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In 2020, various public opinion polls found people were skeptical of vaccines for the virus. In September, Gallup found that 50% of people intended to get the shot while another one from Pew Research Center that month found that 51% were planning to get a COVID-19 vaccine.
Then, as promising trial results emerged, opinions shifted. In December, Gallup found that 63% of Americans plan to get the shot while Pew found that 60% intend to do so.
To emergency department residents like Dr. Kimberly Bambach, the vaccine is critical. Regardless of personal feelings or fears about it, Bambach said people should get the vaccine to safeguard their loved ones.
"I've heard people say things like, 'Oh, it just came out so fast or something to that effect,'" Bambach said. "I think we can say it's a marvel of improved technology and science. ... Even if you don't want to get it for yourself, get it for those who are more vulnerable around you."
Since health care workers deal directly with virus patients, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention designated them as first in line for the shots. Kman said Ohio State expects to have most of its emergency and intensive care unit workers vaccinated within the next few weeks.
Some of the first people to get the vaccine have said they experienced some mild side effects. Kman and Bambach said they felt some pain at the site of the injection, while others who have been inoculated have complained about brief headaches or tiredness.
A handful of extreme allergic reactions have been reported. But those adverse reactions are uncommon, and trials over the last year proved the vaccine to be safe and effective, experts and doctors have said.
"The science is sound and health care providers are getting it," Kman said. "So when you get your chance, don't pass up on it."
mfilby@dispatch.com
@MaxFilby
The Link LonkJanuary 06, 2021 at 02:04AM
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Ohio State starts giving COVID-19 booster shots as vaccine rollout continues - The Columbus Dispatch
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