TYLER, Texas — The new COVID-19 vaccine arrived at CHRISTUS Mother Frances Hospital Thursday morning.
The first doses were given to frontline workers at their hospitals in the afternoon.
Jonathan Henderson, a pulmonologist, and Ryan Tamula, an ER nurse, are two of roughly 100 frontline workers who took the COVID-19 vaccine Thursday. After getting the shot both were in good spirits and see this as a big step forward for East Texas.
"There was a little bit of butterflies, but I'm happy to report no adverse effects," Tamula said.
"It felt like a flu shot," Henderson said.
CHRISTUS wasn't expecting the vaccinations to arrive today but once they found out they were coming, it was all systems go. Just under 1,000 doses arrived.
"As soon as we got it today and got it prepared, we were ready to start administering the vaccine to everyone, and tomorrow we start full bore," Dr. Mark Anderson, Chief Medical Officer, said. "Today, we're trying to get as many in as we can."
Anderson says the plan is to give between 200 and 300 doses a day until they run out with the vaccine going to frontline workers.
"We're asking our frontline workers in the hospital to come down and receive it if they can break away from patient care," Anderson said. "So it's basically a voluntary system."
Not all of the shots will go toward frontline workers at CHRISTUS but to independent physicians as well.
Anderson isn't sure when another batch of vaccines may come in but is hopeful the Moderna vaccine will be available to them sometime in January.
Henderson and Tamula will receive their second dose of the vaccine in three weeks.