. At 95 degrees below zero Fahrenheit, so it is surrounded by dry ice and stored in a super cold freezer.
The COVID-19 vaccine has arrived in Utah.
Two Utah hospitals – the Utah Valley Regional Hospital in Provo and the LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City – have received the first dose of the Pfizer Ink vaccine, and three more will receive their first vaccinations in the next few days, said Dr Christine Dascomb, an infectious disease care worker at Intermount Healthcare Director.
At a news conference Monday, health workers in the Dascomb Utah Valley region will receive their first vaccination in Utah, Wednesday evening. But on Monday evening, Intermount Healthcare released a news release saying those vaccines would be pushed until Tuesday.
In In other states, such as New York, Ohio and Louisiana, health workers began receiving their footage Monday – the first in the United States to receive the new vaccine.
“Today, We come to you with confidence and confidence. Today marks the beginning of the end of this epidemic, ”said Dr. Eddie Steinheim Epidemiologist in Intermountain.
Dascomb said two boxes of the vaccine, developed by Pfizer and its German partner Bioendech, were delivered to the Utah Valley region. Each box contains approximately 975 sizes.
The vaccine, which drops below 95 degrees Fahrenheit in Supercold containers, takes 30 minutes to three hours to dissolve. Vaccine doses are then placed in a fluid for injection. “To ensure stability, they must be managed within six hours,” Dascomp said.
An Utah Valley Regional Hospital employee unwrapped two boxes, each the dimensions of a pizza container, and placed them in the hospital’s Super Gold freezer. The boxes were in a tall cardboard box that was insulated sideways from a shipping box and filled with 50 pounds of dry ice. (Provided video of Intermountain Unboxing; no media admitted to hospital.)
Intermount decided not to set up vaccination meetings before drugs were on hand, Dascomb said. “We can set up caregivers to safely administer those vaccines,” he said.
Utah plans to receive 23,400 doses of Pfizer vaccine in its first shipments this week, according to the Utah Department of Health. By the end of December, a total of 154,000 doses of Pfizer vaccine should be available in the state, which was approved Friday by the Federal Food and Drug Administration, and a similar vaccine by Modernna Inc. FDA approval can be obtained by the end of the week. .
Five Utah hospitals – Utah Valley Regional, LDS, Intermountain Medical Center in Murray and Dixie Regional Medical Center, all run by Intermount Healthcare and Utah Hospital University – were selected to receive the Pfizer vaccine because they contain the largest cassocks of COVID. 19, and because they are equipped with the super cold refrigeration units needed to keep the vaccine.
The moderna vaccine can be stored in standard refrigerators and is expected to be shipped to hospitals in other parts of the state that do not meet the requirements of the Pfizer version.
Stenheim said he and his fellow infectious disease physicians had read the research, “We all feel that this vaccine is safe and effective. … We looked down at the hood. “Doctors are confident about the vaccine and will take it themselves,” he said.
The first dose will be administered in the evening, so treated workers can go home and rest in case of immediate side effects, Dascomp said.
Intermountain does not require its workers to be vaccinated, Dascomp said, adding that the hospital system expects at least 70% of employees to be vaccinated voluntarily.
“We see a very strong desire to support this process,” Dascomb said, adding that nurses and doctors volunteered to help administer the vaccines, usually to educators and staff nurses dealing with immunizations.
The second wave of vaccination in Utah will cover the elderly, people with basic health problems and essential workers, after health workers and long-term care facility residents have been vaccinated. Those people should get their vaccines early next year.
The third wave, which should cover all Uttans, should take place between March and June, Dascomb said. “We will be happy to announce when the time comes for everyone to be vaccinated,” Dascomp said.
Dascomb was pushed back against rumors that Utah political leaders initially jumped into line to get vaccinated. “We have no plans to vaccinate community members at this time,” he said.
Stenheim warned Utans to be patient, as most people may not be vaccinated until next summer. Monday’s news “Light at the end of the tunnel. However, the tunnel we are on is still long. ”
Moreover, Stenheim says, there are still questions as to whether vaccinators can still spread the virus. To be safe, people should follow good public hygiene practices: wearing masks, adhering to social distance, washing hands, and staying home when sick.
(Christopher Serrington | Salt Lake Tribune)