COVID-19 VACCINES, A TRAFFIC JAM, AND A SNOWSTORM
A few months ago, public health workers from Josephine County, Oregon, decided that rather than letting valuable COVID-19 vaccines expire, they would get them to whoever they could — even if those people were just random strangers stuck alongside them in a traffic jam in a snowstorm. The vaccine doses that the Oregon health care workers had with them were made by Moderna, which means that they had a shelf life of just six hours — meaning they could be outside of the extremely cold temperatures required to preserve them for just six hours before they expired. While these storage conditions have contributed to some inefficiencies in the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccines, Josephine County Public Health Director Michael Weber and his 20 colleagues would not let that happen to them. They had been out in the area administering vaccines all day, and rather than let the half dozen leftover doses they had with them expire as they waited in traffic, they decided to see if anyone else waiting in traffic wanted to receive one. Not everyone jumped at the opportunity. Some people in the region are still hesitant to get the vaccine, and many politely declined Weber and his team’s offer. However, after just 45 minutes of Weber and four of his teammembers walking between cars with hypodermics and medical supplies, six people had happily received the first dose of the vaccine. One of the lucky drivers who got vaccinated was so excited that he leaped from his car and stripped off his shirt in the middle of a blizzard. Another was a woman who was actually supposed to receive her dose of the vaccine that day but had missed her appointment. Weber and his crew were more than pleased with how they used their time in that snowstorm. When you have the power to save lives in your car while stuck in traffic, it behooves you to do more with your time than simply listen to podcasts or play I Spy.
THESE HEALTH CARE WORKERS DIDN’T WASTE A SINGLE VACCINE
Have a Laugh!
Easy way out on Pg. 4
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