Area health care facilities get vaccine
Staff writer
Employees of county hospitals are getting vaccinated against COVID-19 thanks to Thursday’s vaccine delivery by Kansas Highway Patrol helicopter.
Residents of St. Luke Living Center will likely be vaccinated this week as well.
St. Luke Hospital CEO Jeremy Ensey said Kansas Highway Patrol delivered 150 doses of vaccinations Thursday.
“We did receive our employee vaccines and the Living Center vaccines were delivered to Hillsboro Hometown Pharmacy which is the pharmacy that was assigned to administer them,” chief nursing officer Kathy McMillen said.
The hospital installed new temperature monitoring alarms on the refrigerators and freezers in the hospital pharmacy and in the outreach clinic, where the vaccines are being stored, to ensure they are safely stored.
Brenda Rhodes said the hospital got Moderna vaccine, which must be kept frozen between -13 and 5 degrees.
“The Moderna vaccine doesn’t require the ultra-freezers that some of the others do,” Rhodes said.
Eric Driggers, owner of Hillsboro Hometown Pharmacy, said his staff will administer vaccinations at the Living Center this week.
Driggers said his pharmacy may or may not end up giving vaccinations at other long-term care facilities.
“We have not been assigned any other facilities at this point,” Driggers said.