Syracuse, N.Y. -- A housekeeper at Upstate University Hospital today became the first person in Central New York to receive an injection of the new Covid-19 vaccine, raising hopes that the end of the deadly pandemic is in sight.
Kenzo B. Mukendi, 48, of Syracuse, was vaccinated at Upstate, the first hospital in the region to get shipments of the vaccine. Developed by Pfizer and BioNtech, the vaccine was the first to receive emergency approval by the Food and Drug Administration. Upstate is one of 150 sites worldwide that participated in the clinical trials for the vaccine.
Mukendi, an immigrant from the Congo who has worked at Upstate for about a year, cleans patient rooms in the hospital’s Covid unit.
“It’s my duty to do the job,” he said. “I can’t be scared.”
Mukendi and four other Upstate frontline workers got their shots shortly after noon in a conference room in the Golisano Children’s hospital. Upstate planned to vaccinate another 50 workers later this afternoon.
Suzanne Buck, an Upstate nurse also vaccinated today, said the shot did not hurt.
“I had no qualms,” she said. “I am so happy to be getting it.”
Dr. Robert Corona, CEO of the hospital, said starting Wednesday Upstate plans to vaccinate as many as 600 workers a day. Hospital workers who will get vaccinated first are doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, housekeepers and others who at high risk because they work closely with coronavirus patients.
The vaccine arrived by truck around 10:30 a.m. State health department officials were at Upstate closely supervising the delivery. The vaccine, which has to be stored at ultra low temperatures, was put in the hospital’s researcher freezers that can achieve temperatures of more than minus 80 degrees centigrade.
“We wanted to get the vaccine into people as soon as possible,” Corona said.
Corona said he could not disclose how many doses Upstate received. But he said the hospital got enough to vaccinate all its frontline workers who work around coronavirus patients.
After the vaccine arrived, hospital workers were very excited. Corona encountered workers in the hallways who said, “Sign me up. Can I get it today?”
Upstate also is expected to provide vaccine for health care workers at other hospitals in the region.
Dr. Stephen Thomas, chief of infectious disease at Upstate, said the vaccine’s arrival is bringing relief to hospital staffers who’ve been scrambling to care for a growing wave of coronavirus patients. Thomas oversees a clinical trial of the vaccine that began at Upstate in the summer. He’s also the lead principal investigator worldwide for the trial.
“It’s not very often you get to participate in a vaccine development project where you actually see it authorized for use in large populations, Thomas said. “This is a very incredible day.”
In addition to hospital workers, nursing home residents and staff are a top priority in the vaccine rollout. There are about 4,000 nursing home residents and 5,000 employees in the five-county Central New York region, according to the state Department of Health. Nursing home officials expect to start vaccinations next week.
Central New York was set to get an initial shipment of 6,400 doses of the vaccine, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said last week. Patients need to get two shots, 21 days apart.
A second vaccine, developed by the pharmaceutical company Moderna, could be approved by the FDA this week.
St. Joseph’s Health expects to receive some of that vaccine. St. Joe’s also expects to get some of the Pfizer vaccine from Upstate.
“In all, we will have access to more than 1,600 doses for our staff and more doses are expected soon,” said Dr. Philip Falcone, St. Joe’s chief medical officer.
The coronavirus has killed more than 300 people in Onondaga County. Nationwide, the death toll is over 300,000.
James T. Mulder covers health and higher education. Have a news tip? Contact him at (315) 470-2245 or jmulder@syracuse.com
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December 16, 2020 at 03:08AM
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