By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews.com
As a supervisor at PacWest Ambulance, Brett Gnaw the past year raced COVID-19 patients to hospitals in Lincoln County and the Willamette Valley.
As labor and delivery manager at Samaritan North Lincoln Hospital, nurse Jen Pierce dealt with new mothers and their families before and after they gave birth during the coronavirus lockdown.
As a Lincoln County Public Health nurse, Breeze Powell was overwhelmed as she helped investigate the tidal wave of COVID-19 outbreaks that hit the county last summer.
And, as chief executive officer of Samaritan Health System’s two hospitals in Lincoln County, Dr. Lesley Ogden, saw how the pandemic changed virtually every procedure at its hospitals and clinics and how it affected hundreds of employees.
After a year of illness and shutdowns, now they are delivering hope.
Gnaw and PacWest crews are administering COVID-19 vaccines to staff and residents of long-term care facilities in Lincoln City and Yachats.
Pierce regularly clears her schedule to volunteer at the mass vaccination clinic at the Lincoln County fairgrounds in Newport.
Breeze has been giving shots and will soon become manager of the county-run Newport clinic.
Ogden, who started her medical career as an emergency room doctor, may be the only hospital CEO in Oregon volunteering one day a week putting shots into arms.
“This is the happiest place you can be,” Ogden said Wednesday as she gave shots of the Pfizer vaccine to Lincoln County residents. “It’s the happy side of COVID.”
As the COVID-19 rate plummets in Lincoln County and the supply of vaccines increases, local paramedics, nurses and doctors who have been dealing with a once-in-a-century pandemic are rejoicing in being able to deliver good news. They get emotional as they talk about the changes they have seen the past year – from lockdowns and illnesses, to despair and death, and now the eager lineups of smiling adults getting the COVID-19 vaccine.
“There’s hope,” said Pierce as she loaded syringes with vaccines Wednesday in Newport. “There’s an end in sight. We’re not out of the woods yet, but we have a way out.”
Lincoln County coronavirus highs and lows
Lincoln County has seen the highs and lows of the coronavirus pandemic. The first of its 1,136 COVID-19 cases was detected March 24, 2020. The first of 20 deaths came three months later.
For much of the summer, Lincoln County had the largest workplace outbreak in Oregon. As the virus spread, county commissioners ordered motels and vacation rentals closed and tourism-related businesses shut down. The local unemployment rate rocketed to 26 percent – the highest in Oregon.
Schools closed and classes went online. Now, grade- and middle-schoolers have returned and sports resumed this week. High school students are scheduled back next month.
And, after a dramatic drop in cases the past month, Lincoln County is one of 10 counties to reach the state’s lowest risk level, allowing larger social gatherings and easing restrictions on businesses.
Coming out of the pandemic means continuing to wear masks and practicing social distancing until an estimated 28,000 county residents get vaccinated. The county is now getting more than 1,200 vaccines a week –- with state and federal promises of more soon – and pharmacies are ramping up their vaccination programs.
The local effort hasn’t been without some glitches. One week the state diverted 500 doses to other counties behind schedule. For two weeks the county didn’t get vaccines because of storms in the Midwest.
It’s website, call center and appointment scheduling software have been flooded by people anxious to get their shots. But Lincoln County has added more phone lines and next week will mail 26,500 notices to county residents walking them through the signup process.
Within weeks, clinics will be set up in Waldport and Toledo and the Confederated Tribe of Siletz Indians has agreed to handle Siletz and Logsden residents with its supply of vaccines.
By the end of this week, the county and its six medical partners should be closing in on giving 10,000 people either their first or second dose.
Sea Aire second doses
Gnaw and four co-workers from PacWest Ambulance arrived shortly before 10 a.m. Tuesday at the Sea Aire assisted living facility in Yachats, ready to give second doses to 73 staff and residents.
Sea Aire was the only such facility in the county to dodge COVID-19, reporting no cases among staff or residents. To do that facility ended visits from family and friends and established strict protocols for those living or working inside.
“It’s very emotional,” said Brenda Wolf, the resident care manager as she got her vaccination. “It’s been a long journey.”
Gnew and his crew quickly worked through the line of staff and residents, doing the paperwork, and then inoculating people two at a time.
“This is a very welcome thing,” he said. “People want to be people again … and hopefully this can take care of this problem.”
Delivering hope
While Lincoln County Public Health organizes the mass clinic at the fairgrounds in Newport, it’s a team effort to get vaccines into the arms of hundreds of people who get appointments and show up.
Sheriff’s department and county emergency management volunteers staff the parking lot. Others check appointment schedules at the front door; still others inside make sure the paperwork is filled out properly. Nurses from the county or Samaritan Health Systems give many of the shots; other medical volunteers are being vetted to join the effort soon.
At the back of the hall, PacWest paramedics watch over the people with shots to help with any reaction.
“In order for us to do this, it can’t be just the county or Samaritan Health Systems, it’s a large partnership … and that’s what was happening,” said county Commissioner Kaety Jacobson who worked the entrance for a day last week, and was struck by the personal stories she heard. “People were helping others; adult children helping their parents; one couple walked their neighborhood, signed people up and then drove them to the clinic.
“I was just really struck by the hope,” Jacobson said.
Hope.
That’s the recurring theme of the paramedics, nurses and doctors finally — they hope — putting an end to a year-long nightmare.
“Everybody’s been in chronic stress mode for months and months,” said Powell, the county nurse. “Now, there’s a big sense of relief. People are smiling; they’re happy. People have hope.”
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How to navigate the system and find your shot
Lincoln County Public Health knows the sign-up process can be difficult. The county has set up a call center — 541-265-0621 — with five employees to assist people by phone in English and Spanish. There are limited phone lines in the county system, so some callers are experiencing delays or dropped calls. County Commissioner Doug Hunt told the Yachats City Council in a meeting Monday evening that the county is spending $15,000 to $20,000 to install 34 additional phone lines to help resolve the problem.
“We acknowledge the call center had some problems,” Hunt said.
Calls can also be made to the statewide help line at 2-1-1 or to the Samaritan vaccination scheduling assistance line at 855-441-2311.
More information can be found on the county’s website or by emailing the county at LincolnCoCallCenter@co.lincoln.or.us
Public Health officials are also asking that friends, family and neighbors of eligible people help them sign up for the vaccine. Public Health has an outreach video for partners or the public who want to help people sign up for the vaccine. The video is an hour, but has links to topics that may be of interest.
The county-organized clinics are just one opportunity to get a vaccine. Some other options are:
Statewide Vaccine Information to view eligibility requirements and see clinics available around the state;
Linn & Benton County vaccination events through Samaritan Health Services (open to Lincoln County residents);
Safeway Pharmacy – Only open to eligible groups. Located in Newport and Lincoln City;
BiMart Pharmacy – Vaccines coming soon to its Lincoln City store;
Costco Pharmacy – Located in Albany, Aloha, Bend, Central Point, Clackamas, Eugene, Hillsboro, Portland, Roseburg, Salem, Tigard, Warrenton, and Wilsonville;
Salem Health Clinics (State Fairgrounds) – Open to anyone with a MyChart account. If no appointments slots appear on MyChart, that means all available appointments have been filled. Check back on MyChart regularly to see if additional appointments have opened.