With the long-awaited vaccine for COVID-19 finally available, so many of us are experiencing feelings of relief and hope, as well as anxiety about how quickly we’ll be able to get vaccinated. In the spirit of this month’s Pulse, the Health Services value of being Accountable helps us to navigate this moment with the right balance of urgency and thoughtfulness.

Everyone who wants to receive the vaccine will be able to receive it. Our work involves making the best decisions possible for how to ensure safety and minimize risk as we deploy the vaccine in the period ahead. Our first COVID-19 vaccine clinics began on December 18, with the plan to vaccinate a total of 10,000 by the end of the year. It is critical that we are informed by the best evidence available, which includes both the information that workforce members provided in the Persinda survey as well as the CDC guidelines related to which healthcare workers should be vaccinated first. We must ensure that the workforce members at greatest risk are given priority as we receive batches of the vaccine, and no one will be excluded from the opportunity as we anticipate receiving sufficient number of vaccines to cover all workforce members in the early months of 2021.

Finally, please see the COVID-19 SharePoint page for more information about the vaccine and the process. We are aware there is tremendous anxiety and urgency to receive the vaccine. We ask for your patience and understanding as we embark on this mass vaccination effort for our workforce. As always, we appreciate all you are doing.