The New York Times reports today from Josephine County, Oregon, in the southern part of the state, where a team of health care professionals got stuck in a snow storm while traveling between tiny Cave Junction, population 1,883, and the county seat, Grants Pass, population 34,533, some 30 miles away. A jack-knifed truck was blocking the road, so they got out and started offering the vaccine to folks similarly stranded by the accident. They administered all six doses they had, knowing the vaccine was likely to expire by the time they got back to Grants Pass. Here's a quote form Michael Weber, the public health director for Josephine County.
"We had one individual who was so happy, he took his shirt off and jumped out of the car."
Another recipient, he said, was a Josephine County Sheriff’s Office employee who had arrived too late for the clinic in Cave Junction but ended up stuck with the others on her way back to Grants Pass.
Most drivers laughed at the offer of a roadside coronavirus vaccine and politely declined, even though Mr. Weber said he had a doctor and an ambulance crew on hand to help oversee the operation. He acknowledged it was not the typical setting for a vaccination.
“It was a strange conversation,” Mr. Weber said. “Imagine yourself stranded on the side of the road in a snowstorm and having someone walk up and say: ‘Hey. Would you like a shot in the arm?’”
I can't help wonder if those who declined the vaccine did so because they plan never to get the vaccine, a phenomenon that may be more common in rural areas, as discussed here.
By the way, it's worth clicking over to the story just to see the photos of jubilant people getting and giving the vaccine, with a gorgeous snowstorm in a forest as the backdrop. .
I've written previously about Cave Junction here and here and wider Josephine County here and here. The County's population is about 80,000.
1 comment:
This is hilarious and absolutely great all at the same time! In my earlier post about the coronavirus in rural America, I noted that both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines had limited lifespans, even while in frozen conditions. That being said, I think it's wonderful that the team of healthcare professionals made the best possible use of their situation to not only not waste the vaccines, but to help others in these rural communities get vaccinated! I briefly clicked on the link to the N.Y. Times article and thought the snow-flurried pictures were an amazing depiction of a community coming together. With the challenges that face many rural communities in getting vaccinated, maybe a road-side coronavirus vaccine clinic is exactly what's needed. After all, difficult situations require unqiue and creative solutions.
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