Non-hospital health care workers wait for vaccine in St. Louis

ST. Louis — The COVID-19 pandemic put many regular doctor and dental appointments on hold in 2020. Vaccine news was a hopeful development for patients, doctors, nurses and dentists towards a normal life.

The Missouri Vaccine Priority List puts all physicians and patient-facing healthcare professionals at the top, stays safe, and protects patients from exposure.

However, the reality of vaccine deployment has made many clinics in the region inaccessible.

“I was really surprised to find out that my doctor wasn’t eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine,” John Shigemura told 5 On Your Side I-Team.

Shigemura’s doctors specialize in patients with weakened immunity. They are the ones who will most benefit from others who are immune to COVID-19, as the vaccine has not yet been recommended to them. Nonetheless, Missouri’s vaccine deployment program has excluded people working in his clinic.

“I knew he wasn’t considered a vaccine candidate because he was looking at the patient outside the hospital,” Shigemura said. “I was actually a little hesitant to make a follow-up visit just because I knew it.”

The I-Team is also concerned that the official plan to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine appears to limit access only to those working within the hospital system: nurses, dentists, and other patients I received an email from a responding healthcare professional.

“We are in saliva and aerosols every day and are asking for help,” said one dentist, adding, “we feel we are a lost group.”

Dr. Alex Garza, an incident commander at the St. Louis Metropolitan Pandemic Task Force, admitted at a briefing Wednesday that he was also contacted by healthcare professionals who did not know where the current vaccine distribution plan fits.

“Just because they don’t work in hospitals or emergency facilities doesn’t mean they aren’t caring for COVID patients or they aren’t exposed to COVID,” Garza said. “We recognize this as another challenge that was not in our original plans with the state.”

When asked about how to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine to health care workers who are not in the state, a representative of the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services wrote: A major vaccination mode based on best practices for patient-friendly healthcare professionals who are not affiliated with a major healthcare system or hospital. “

“These teams aren’t fully developed yet. We’re not yet ready to launch because we’re not nearing the next stage,” he added.

Individual counties have come up with their own plans, as Dr. Garza said the Task Force hopes to have plans to vaccinate previously left-behind workers by next week.

A representative from the St. Louis County Public Health Service told Team I that the county is preparing to vaccinate for health care workers who have yet to reach it. They said they would expect more details on Friday.

Hospitals and nursing homes remain a top priority in Jefferson County, where the Ministry of Health has not yet been vaccinated, officials said in a briefing Wednesday.

“Once these needs are met, additional vaccines will be distributed to other providers in our area,” said Kelly Volmer, director of the Jefferson County Health Department.

St. Charles County is also waiting for additional vaccines.County to medical and dental workers Sign up for vaccination online“We have not received any state advice regarding the timing or amount of vaccination,” he added.

This week, we were unable to respond to a request for updates from the St. Louis City Health Department regarding the status of vaccine distribution to non-hospital health care workers.

Shigemura said these delays put healthcare workers and their patients at risk.

“I think our doctors are our most valuable resource. They keep people away from the hospital and prevent their spread, so we need to do more,” he said. Said.