Parkview Health Administers First COVID-19 Vaccines In The State

Parkview Health in northeast Indiana administered some of the first COVID-19 vaccines in the state on Monday. Along with inoculating their own staff, Parkview will serve as a vaccination site for other health care workers in the state as well. 

Parkview in Fort Wayne and Clark Memorial Hospital in Jeffersonville both received initial doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine Monday morning. Parkview received more than 900 doses on the first day, and expects to receive a total of 2,000 at the end of the week. Next week, Parkview anticipates a total of 8,000 doses.

Michelle Charles, the vice president of nursing informatics at Parkview, said the overall total number of doses the hospital will get depends on allocations from the federal and state government. That allocation includes the second dose of the vaccine that needs to be administered within 28 days for full efficacy.

“We may get a total today, but it’s not what it exactly is. I think however much vaccine as we have, we give it until it’s gone, that’s how the state’s doing it,” Charles said. 

READ MORE: How Will Indiana Distribute COVID-19 Vaccines? Here's What You Need To Know

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The first doses of the vaccine are being offered to frontline health care workers as well as long-term care facility residents and staff. Charles said while the vaccine is not mandatory for anyone, health care workers included, it is encouraged. 

“We think in order for us, as co-workers to be safe, our communities to be safe, and our families to be safe, it’s best to get the vaccine,” she said. “We know it’s a choice, there’s a lot of information that talks about the value of the vaccine, so yes, we encourage all of our co-workers and our communities to get the vaccine.”

According to the state officials, more than 50 Indiana hospitals and clinics are expected to receive a total of 55,575 doses of vaccine by the end of the week, with additional shipments expected weekly. 

Contact reporter Bárbara at banguiano@lakeshorepublicmedia or follow her on Twitter at @radiospice219.