Ochsner, Franklin Foundation grapple with limited vaccine supply

New patients are being taken for first-dose vaccinations at Franklin Foundation Hospital, while in the Ochsner Health System, new patient appointments for the initial vaccine are on hold as the hospital system manages a backlog of rescheduling cancelled appointments after a drop in vaccines received in recent weeks.
In Franklin, Kevin Romero, director of marketing, business development and co-director of physician services, said that 300 of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine doses are being given per week to the qualifying public the last two weeks after the hospital received 210 doses the initial week.
Those eligible are in Phase 1B, Tier 1, which includes a variety of dental and medical professionals and staff members and those ages 70 and above.
The hospital will complete its third week of public vaccinations with the Pfizer-BioNTech shot this week before it follows that up with three weeks of second doses of the vaccine.
The hospital has spots open for its final initial first-dose vaccine run Thursday. If people want to get in on the initial round, they need to call as soon as possible to get an appointment.
There is no stipulation on who can be inoculated, other than the state guidelines.
“We do have some people that come in from outside of our area, but we’re trying to take care of our community as a priority,” Romero said.
There is no online registration outlet. To sign up, you must call 337-907-6585.
“We felt with the biggest population being that 70 and above, online registration would be the hardest part for that population, so what we’re asking is to call the number, leave your name and number and let somebody answer the phone,” Romero said.
If no one answers, Romero said, leave a message with your name and number and someone will return the call to schedule an appointment.
Romero said they have been told to expect the same vaccine allotments they have received going forward. He said they are taking appointments for the next round of first doses, too, which will be administered at the end of February.
“We know we will have vaccine for them in three weeks,” he said. “We absolutely know we will.”
Meanwhile in the Ochsner Health System, CEO Warner Thomas said Monday on a video conference interview with media outlets that their supply of the first dosages of the vaccine has dropped about 70% as the state is navigating its allocation duties.
“They’ve got tremendous demand for vaccine, and they’re doing the best they can to meet the demand issues,” Thomas said.
For instance, last week Thomas said Ochsner received 3,900 doses for south Louisiana, and 975 apiece for its Lafayette and north Louisiana markets.
However, this week, they secured 1,950 for south Louisiana, none for Lafayette and 975 in Shreveport.
“If you ask me how the numbers were determined, I don’t know,” Thomas said.
Because of the cut in vaccines received, the health system stopped taking new appointments and is having to reschedule the appointments of others, building up a waiting list of 21,400 last week. The hospital has rescheduled about 10% of their patients whose appointments are canceled. Appointments are being rescheduled in the order they were canceled.
“We’ll reschedule more as we get more doses,” Thomas said.
Thomas and Ochsner Chief Medical Officer Robert Hart stressed the vaccine snarl affects only those who are scheduled to receive the first dose.
“We have all of the vaccine doses for people to get their second dose, so nobody will be impacted from a second-dose perspective,” Thomas said.
While new appointments are not being accepted at the moment, Thomas said anyone can register in the Ochsner system via the MyOchsner app. They will be booked on a first-come, first-served basis.
Regardless of what vaccine is offered, Dr. Sandra Kemmerly, Ochsner Health infection disease specialist and assistant medical director for hospital quality, said the public should get it.
Kemmerly said that news has been good in terms of reactions to the vaccine.
“Generally speaking, people are doing well,” Kemmerly said. “We do know that the second dose is a little bit more problematic for some than the first, but we have not seen any significant adverse events. Most of the discomfort or side effects resolve within 24 hours, and so we’re not seeing people miss days on end of work.”
That stronger reaction to the second dose, Teche Action Clinic CEO Dr. Gary Wiltz said recently, is because patients’ bodies likely have developed COVID-19 viral antibodies.
“So when they recognize it that second time, they responded even stronger,” he said, noting that those who have the stronger responses have developed stronger antibodies.
In another COVID-19 vaccine note, the Louisiana Department of Health reported 25 new providers across the state were added to the network providing a limited supply of COVID-19 vaccine to those eligible.
However, none of those new sites include additional locations in St. Mary or Assumption parishes.
With the additions, 324 providers, including many pharmacies, received a limited supply of the vaccine, according to a Louisiana Department of Health release. The full list of providers is available at covidvaccine.la.gov. Residents also can call 211 to find a nearby provider.
In Region 3, which includes St. Mary Parish, the Louisiana Department of Health reported 22,582 vaccines have been distributed as of Friday.
Statewide, 314,328 doses have been given out, including 272,625 first doses. A total of 41,703 people have received both doses.
For more information on the COVID-19 vaccine at Ochsner, visit www.ochsner.org/vaccine.