San Diego Public Health Leaders Detail How They'll Roll Out A COVID-19 Vaccine
Speaker 1: 00:00 It may be the light at the end of the tunnel that was just referred to another company, announced it's seeking emergency approval for its COVID-19 vaccine. Moderna will now join Pfizer as the first two companies asking us regulators for permission to distribute their vaccine. If approved Pfizer's rollout could begin as early as December 12th, KPBS health reporter Taran mento asked the county's public health leaders. What that will look like in San Diego, KPBS health reporter Teran mento asked the county's public health leaders. What that will look like in San Diego. Here's part of her zoom interview with health and human services, agency, director, Nick [inaudible] and public health officer dr. Wilma Wooten. Speaker 2: 00:45 Thank you to both of you for making time for this. I want to begin with how the vaccine will get to San Diego. You know, it looks like the Pfizer vaccine could be here first and that it must be stored at, you know, minus 70 degrees Celsius. So how will it get here and where would it be offloaded in San Diego? Speaker 3: 01:02 Yes, there has there's clear requirements on the temperature, on the storage, uh, for the vaccine, uh, the way it's even shipped. Uh, it's coming in a special kind of, uh, cooling storage, um, to what we have prepared here at the County to our providers who have this type of specialized freezing, and then happy to talk more, what we have done proactively to buy additional of these specialized, uh, cooling units, freezing units for the vaccine. As we think about the distribution across with our health care providers throughout San Diego. Oh, I was just gonna add that, um, in submitting your application providers, many of their application, um, and identifying what allocations they want, they have to provide evidence that they have the capability to still order the vaccines appropriately. And particularly the Pfizer is the, uh, sub cooling or freezing. So they have to have the, uh, capacity to manage and store the vaccines appropriately. Uh, and if they don't, then they can't get at least that particular vaccine. Speaker 2: 02:17 You mentioned applications from providers. Can you clarify how many you've received if you've actually approved any Speaker 3: 02:29 Approving? We just help providers fill out the information that the CDC requires and that information goes directly to the CDC and, uh, then they will approve be processed. We're collecting the information from hospitals, from clinics, from medical group practices, et cetera, but there it's being submitted up to the state. And also we are vaccinating ourselves, right? Our public health clinics can just clarify Speaker 2: 03:00 Where the County will be storing it. If that's, if that's confirmed, ready to go. As soon as potentially December 12, Speaker 3: 03:07 We have a battle scene warehouse that, uh, where we store all of our other vaccines, uh, we might be, uh, we'll be working with partners, uh, early on until we get our freezers. Uh, but once we get our phrases and it will be in our vaccine warehouse location, but we're not going to tell you where that is. It's not a secret, but it is a secure environment with all the requirements that we have to have. Speaker 2: 03:37 I know a CDC advisory group recently held a meeting on the priority groups that would receive it. It looks like healthcare workers and other essential employees first in line plus residents in long-term care facilities and older adults with medical conditions. So how will the County identify where they are, and then also notified those particular individuals. Speaker 3: 03:57 So doctors and nurses, and then first responders, and then also a nursing home workers. That's phase one, a, a one B is actually, um, individuals that have at least two or more underlying medical conditions. And as I stated before, that's pretty much over half it's almost probably two-thirds if not more, uh, over 75% [inaudible] of the entire San Diego population. So we will have to determine what within that group what's going to be prioritized again, individuals, uh, with two or more underlying medical conditions. MCC recognizes this too. So we are continuously asking the state STC for more granular, uh, guidance so that everyone is doing the same thing Speaker 2: 04:48 You're going to be. If you fit this category, come to this location during these hours, how specific are you going to get with, with, uh, with notifying people? Speaker 3: 04:58 First, we start with the medical homes because that's where the relationship is. So the medical homes, uh, of the, uh, physicians or healthcare providers, uh, will know their patients, right? Because you have patient confidentiality. So they'll know those folks that need to be, you know, uh, prioritized if you will, on their conditions. Number one. So that relationship will be with the provider community, but we're fortunate in California. We're fortunate in San Diego are having a huge segment of our population that is tied to a medical home. Uh, that's the great work our state has done. And the coverage, you know, up to 26 years of age and having people access to medical homes, clearly there are some that still don't, uh, and that's the population. And we'll talk about how we're communicating with that population that does not have a medical home, uh, kind of like we've been doing with T3 about how do we get to those folks for testing and so forth, or what we've been doing with seasonal flu already, which by the way, is going fairly well, approaching nearly a million already, uh, which looks like we'll surpass last year, but it's, there's multiple avenues we're using of how do we connect to those people that need to come in. Speaker 3: 06:11 And this is not the first time we've had to deal with this type of situation in terms of prioritizing vaccinations. As you may recall, your H one N one pandemic the same. It was the actually it's probably even worse in terms of, there was a small amount of vaccine that was initially, uh, rolled out. Uh, and then there was prioritization of the priorities and that information, the guidance comes from CDC, and we push that out at every opportunity during our press conferences, during our news, uh, our providers do our K hand. So that's the way we will use the same strategies that we use, uh, in general for pushing out information about, uh, vaccination. Speaker 2: 06:59 And you just brought up H one N one. And, um, the thing that's going to be different about this round of vaccination is that the leading contenders are to dose vaccines and American adults do not have a particularly good track record of following those schedules. So how do you plan to, to, you know, monitor or support compliance, Speaker 3: 07:19 W we're we're blessed Lilly less than San Diego having one of the best immunization register seasons that, uh, the San Diego immunization registry STR has been established for long period of time. Uh, it is a very intelligent system that, uh, um, that for vaccinations, uh, and it's mainly children, but we have for kids, we registered in, uh, into the SDR for COVID it's mandate, it's mandatory. And so we're going to have an advantage in the sense that people will be registered in when they get their first dose, uh, not only being given physical reminder cards, but having a system that will be able to follow up with them in addition to their provider community, their medical home, and you're right. You know, we still have to get them to take the first dose and then got to get that second dose. And all the polls are showing that only what 60% of people are willing to do the first dose. Speaker 3: 08:15 So that's going to be a big lift and it's going to be the ongoing consciousness, raising public awareness, the media outreach and education groups that we've established the faith community. It's going to have to be a saturation approach of all places, trusted messengers of reminding not only the first dose, but that second dose. And then obviously having the type of technology and sophistication to know what vaccine they took. We have a lot of experience with two dose series vaccinations, um, first hepatitis a outbreak, and then, um, an edge cost goal, uh, group B, uh, outbreak at San Diego state. And so our San Diego immunization registry provides us with the opportunity and the ability to track vaccinations. Uh, obviously systems are only as good as the data that goes in, but when we administer, uh, the vaccinations, like if we are doing it out in the field, uh, to, uh, um, vulnerable populations, staff takes, uh, the iPad out with them and they can do it then, or what they documented if they don't do that. Speaker 3: 09:31 And then when they come back to the home base, then they put all that information in. I have said this many times before, um, the FDA, uh, next week we'll be reviewing Pfizer's application. They will be reviewing all of the, uh, applications for the other pharmaceutical companies to, um, for the, uh, EUA, the emergency use authorization. If FDA goes through that application process, they say it's safe, then we will recommend it to the community. And by recommending it to the community, I have to lead, uh, by example and get it myself. So with the flu vaccinations, you'll see pictures of me getting the flu shot at those pods. So we will be doing the same thing. My father taught me that, uh, you take care of your family first and then you eat. So, uh, I'm going to make sure that there is, uh, I took my seasonal flu shot. I looking forward to getting my COVID vaccine shot, but I'm going to make sure first our community who needs it most gets it. And then you'll see me there in line, uh, getting that, uh, COVID action. That's just a part of health reporter, Taren Mentos lengthy interview with director mashy and dr. Wooten, you can read the full transcript@kpbs.org. Speaker 4: 11:05 [inaudible].
