Ochsner St. Mary employees began receiving the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine Tuesday afternoon as Audrie Jones, top photo, manager of Med/Surg and ICU, was the first employee to receive the vaccine. In the bottom photo, Dr. Scott Domingue, Emergency Department Medical Director, was the first doctor to receive the vaccine. (Submitted Photos/Ochsner St. Mary)
(Updated) COVID-19 vaccination of Ochsner St. Mary employees begins
Ochsner St. Mary began the vaccination of its front-line staff Tuesday afternoon as employees received the first of a two-dose Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in Morgan City.
The hospital received 75 doses of the vaccine and was to administer 25 Tuesday. Audrie Jones, manager of Med/Surg and the Intensive Care Unit, was the first employee to receive the vaccine, while Emergency Department Director Dr. Scott Domingue was the first physician to get the vaccine.
“It didn’t hurt at all,” Jones said. “Actually, the flu vaccine hurt worse than that, so that was a pleasant surprise.”
Jones volunteered to be the first employee to receive the vaccine. She said some fellow employees know the importance of getting this vaccine now, while others are waiting to see what the side effects are.
“So we’re just going to let them know hopefully that everything goes smoothly and it protects us and our families from getting COVID,” Jones said.
Protecting herself from the virus with this vaccine is even more critical for Jones, who said her father lives next door to her and is undergoing chemotherapy.
“We’ve really had to keep our distance from each other for a long time, so I wanted to get this so there was no chance of me giving him COVID,” she said.
Domingue said because the U.S. Food and Drug Administration deemed the vaccine safe, it is crucial for the public to get it.
He said that 37,000 people went through the trials with “minimal” side effects reported, including Bell’s palsy and facial paralysis reported among a few patients.
“But they said they could have gotten that regardless of if they had this vaccine or not, so it wasn’t deemed significant,” Domingue said.
Ochsner St. Mary began the vaccinations with its front line workers, the nurses and doctors who will work with COVID-19 patients daily.
In 21 days, those who received the initial vaccine will receive a second dose.
Jones encouraged the public to get the vaccine because it is a way to protect themselves and their families.
“As more of us get the vaccine and you’ll see that there aren’t that many side effects, I think more people will be willing to try it,” she said.