TTC_03_31_21_Vol.17-No.23

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Page 12 www.TheTownCommon.comMarch 31, 2021Community NewsVolunteers Make Lower Merrimack Valley Regional Collaborative Vaccine Clinic a SuccessAMESBURY — Amesbury FireChief Ken Berkenbush and WestNewbury health agent Paul Sevigny,on behalf the nine-communityLower Merrimack Valley RegionalCollaborative highlight some ofthe hundreds of volunteers whohelped make a recent weekendvaccine clinic a success.During the weekend of March20th, 2,522 people received theirfirst doses of the Pfizer-BioNTechCOVID-19 vaccine, continuinglya remarkable and efficient trendfor residents attending this municipally-drivenvaccination effort.Volunteers spanning in ageacross seven decades, from highschool students to retired nurses,reported to Amesbury HighSchool to take part in the clinicon Saturday and Sunday, March20-21.The volunteers were given a varietyof roles and some of themwere given leadership roles basedon their level of experience, expertiseand ability."Every one of these volunteershas done an incredible job andwe are all extremely grateful andappreciative of the work they'vedone," Chief Berkenbush said.• Annuals• Perennials• House Plants• Trees & Shrubs• Fruit treesOutdoor Furniture& Gift Shop• Berlin Garden Furniture Dealer• Indoor furniture• Custom wreaths & arrangements• Home Décor• Garden accentsNurseryWolf Hill Ipswich60 Turnpike RoadIpswich, MA 01938978-356-6342• Vegetables & Herbs• Pottery• Statuary"Everyone from the parking lotgreeters to the pharmacy staff preparingvaccines to the crews registeringpatients, plays a key role inmaking this clinic as successful asit has been these past few weeks."Nearly 200 people reported towork at Amesbury High Schoolrecently to put on the clinic, includingfire chiefs, dentists, highschool students and local residentsseeking to pitch in."We are all driven by our desireto help our community move pastthe pandemic, and everyone workingat the vaccine clinic feels that,with each person passing throughour doors, we are one step closer,"Sevigny said.Discussing their roles and whythey're taking part in the clinic,here are just a few of the peoplewhose leadership and efforts havebeen instrumental to the vaccineprocess throughout the clinic:Jessica Marks, age 15,Vaccination Distribution Leader“My role is to help support thestaff that are administering thevaccines and making sure that thedifferent vaccine stations are gettingthe vaccines when they needthem.”• Custom ContainerPlantings• Loams• Stones• Mulches• Compost• Bagged Products• FertilizersLandscapeMaterials• Daily deliveriesfrom both WolfHill locations• Cambridge &Belgard Pavers andWall StoneGarden Center• Fox Farm BrandPotting Soils• Soil Amendments• Watering Supplies• Grass Seedwww.wolfhillgardencenter.comJessica MarksAll photos courtesy of the Lower MerrimackValley Regional CollaborativeWhy being here is important tome: “I’m here today because I likehelping people and I want to continuedoing this field in the futureand also because we’re saving livesand it’s extremely exhilarating. Ijust love being here and everyonearound us is just fantastic and happyand energetic. Everyone here isglad to be there and I love that.”Jessica, and other "runners" at theclinic, deliver vaccine syringes fromthe pharmacy room to the tables.They wear special vests and otherstaff are not allowed to disturb themor ask them to perform any otherjob than the extremely vital task athand.David Baker, age 25,Logistics LeadMy role: “I am making sure that• Large ToolSelection• Organic Seeds,soils & fertilizers• Seed startingsuppliesWolf Hill Gloucester104 Eastern AveGloucester, MA 01930978-281-4480all parts of the clinic have the suppliesthey need for the clinic to beable to function and maintain andtracking usage and making surethat we’re going to have enoughsupplies to run the clinic. Anythingfrom gloves, sharps containers,alcohol wipes, band-aids, needles,syringes and even the bagswe use to get the vaccine from thepharmacy staff down the hall tothe vaccine stations.”David BakerWhy being here is important tome: “As a firefighter in West NewburyI’ve seen a lot of the effect ofthe virus on the community and Ireally want to see those that wantto use the vaccine and have that asa tool to be able to fight the virusand be able to get it.”David makes sure fresh PPE getsto the clinic staff and volunteers.Lauren Conway, age 27,Pharmacy ManagerMy role: “Here we have a bunchof pharmacists and pharmacytechs drawing out the doses to beadministered to the patients.”Lauren ConwayWhy being here is important tome: “This is incredibly importantfor us because we understand howimportant it is to get everybodyvaccinated. But also, the amountof people that we’re trying to vaccinateeach weekend is nearly impossibleto put all on the nurses.Each day we’re doing about 1,200doses. So, it’s really important forpharmacy workers to come in hereand draw out these does so thatthey’re ready to be injected intothe patients to help out the nurses.”“This is amazing. I feel like I’mpart of history. It’s historic becausewe’ve never seen a virus like thisand the vaccine came out at a perfecttime. It’s definitely awesometo be a part of vaccinating all thesepeople and saving lives.”Lauren and the other extremelytalented pharmacy professionalsworking the clinic are responsible forthe clinic's extremely efficient rate ofvaccine dosage and usage.Tina LaCourse, age 38,Nurse ManagerMy role: “I am helping to supportthe vaccinators that are hereand helping people get registeredfor their vaccines.”Why being here is important tome: “We’re vaccinating the community.It’s been a year of contacttracing and we’re working toget everybody back to where theywant to be. Back in school. Backto work. Looking forward to thesummer. It's been really great to bea part of.”Tina LaCourseTina and others in her role act ina role not altogether dissimilar to anurse manager in a hospital. Theymanage and support the clinic staffto ensure the operation runs withminimal disruptions.Erin RichErin Rich, age 46,Director of Volunteer StaffingMy role: “Myself and the volun-Community Announcements,page 13
2March 31, 2021www.TheTownCommon.com Page 13Community NewsCommunity Announcements,from page 12teer leads, who have dedicated a lotof time and have been amazing, arehelping to screen potential volunteersand organize them all. We’restaffing approximately 200 volunteersper weekend at this point in11 or 12 different roles across fourshifts. We’re just all super investedand collaborating really well tomake sure we’re getting as manypeople vaccinated as we can.”Why being here is importantto me: “For much of the past14 months many of us have felthelpless and like we didn’t reallyhave any opportunity to make adifference. When I reached outto ask if there were any opportunitiesto volunteer, it was reallyjust to make a difference in thecommunity and help get our citizensvaccinated. So, it feels likewe’ve gone from feeling helplessto just feeling hopeful. It’sso amazing to see the smiles onpeoples’ faces and the joy in theireyes. We have such a great collaborationbetween the membersof government, health departments,public health nurses, firedepartments, volunteers, vaccinatorsand pharmacy staff acrossthe region.”Erin is responsible for recruiting,training, organizing and schedulingthe hundreds of volunteers workingthe clinic.Paul SevignyPaul Sevigny, age 49,Incident CommanderMy role: “My role is to keep aneye on things and make sure theygo smoothly. I help out the volunteersand the other incident commandstaff if they need help andI step in and support them withwhat they need. We work collectivelyas a team because it’s a teamevent and we have to work togetherand help each other out.”Why being here is important tome: “It’s good for the community.The state has asked us to plan forsomething like this for the last 15years and with training and practice,now this is the time to showwhat we learned and help supportour community, and all our communitymembers have appreciatedit very much.”As a member of the clinic's "commandstaff," Paul helps ensure theclinic operates efficiently at all timesand supports all departments whenthey are in need.Che ElwellChe Elwell, age 50,Technology LeadMy role: "I’m trying to helpensure that everyone here can dotheir job efficiently and with as fewhiccups as possible. We want to beable to capture the data we need tocapture without slowing down theprocess of getting all of these greatpeople vaccinated. There’s a lot ofhealth information related to thepatients and the vaccine, the dosage,even which arm it goes into,and then preparing them to be ableto schedule their second shot."Why being here is importantto me: “It’s been a very long yearfor everyone and it’s nice to be ina place where we’re actually makingprogress toward a better andbrighter future. Helping so manypeople and having so many peoplebe so positive has been great.”Che brings his knowledge of softwareand hardware technology tothe clinic, debugging schedulingsoftware, fixing tablets and laptopsand providing advanced analytics togive clinic organizers a top-level lookat where things stand at any givenmoment.Deb Rogers, age 53,Registration SupervisorMy role: “I’m helping organizethe registration process and makingsure that everything is runningsmoothly. We have two differentregistration areas with 12 volunteersaltogether.”Why being here is important tome: “It’s good for me to be hereas a public health director just toknow what’s going on to be ableDeb Rogersto help with the other two supervisorsthat are here. Everything isrunning very smoothly, and all ofthe volunteers have been doing afantastic job.”Deb is the director of publichealth for the Town of Newbury.Among other things, she has helpedfacilitate a doubling of the clinic'sregistration tables to keep lines andwaiting times short.Patti McAlarney, age 61,Registration LeadMy role: “We’re making sure thateverybody that comes here whois eligible and able to receive thevaccine, is able to receive one. Weall work in public health and thatcovers more than people realize.This right here is the crux of publichealth and we’re able to do somethingthat really addresses a need inthe community that had to be met.”Why being here is important tome: “We felt that it was very difficultTHE NATION’SG U T T E R1G U A R DFINANCING THAT FITS YOUR BUDGET! 1CALL US TODAY FORA FREE ESTIMATEfor a lot of our community membersto make it to the large vaccination sitesand so the nine communities bandedtogether and wanted to have somethinglike this available. This way, particularlyour elderly population, is ableto easily obtain a vaccine.”“It’s really exciting to be part ofit. Everyone is certainly appreciativeto be able to get their vaccines.It’s a really energetic group of peoplethat has put this together. It’sbeen a lot of hard work.”Patti McAlarneyPromo Code: 2851Subject to credit approval. Call for details.1-844-797-0264Mon-Thurs: 8am-11pm, Fri-Sat: 8am-5pm, Sun: 2pm-8pm ESTPatti's team makes sure everyonecomes through the entry/registrationprocess as quickly and efficiently aspossible.Patrice Allen, age 70,Volunteer LeadMy role: “I help screen volunteersto ensure they are free of symptomswhen they come in to work at theclinic. The volunteer leads also provideorientation for everyone andongoing support during each clinicsession so that everyone is able todo their jobs properly."Why being here is important tome: “This is an issue that has been onpeoples’ minds and creating anxietyfor a year and interrupting lives desperately.And to see this many teachersbe able to get access and people whoneed it getting access to the vaccine isamazing. As a retired nurse this alsogives me a wonderful way to be usefuland be productive and help whereverI can, and I am seeing that samefeeling on the faces of the volunteerswho come in. We are all grateful to bemaking a difference after a year wheremany of us felt helpless.”As one of several Volunteer Leads,Patrice is essentially filling the role of ahuman resources team member for amedium sized corporation here at theclinic, part of a team that ensures hundredsof volunteers are screened, trained,outfitted and prepared every weekend.Patrice AllenBACKED BY AYEAR-ROUNDCLOG-FREEGUARANTEEEXCLUSIVE LIMITED TIME OFFER!15 %OFFYOUR ENTIREPURCHASE *10 &+ 5% OFFTO THE FIRST 50CALLERS ONLY! **SENIORS &MILITARY!*For those who qualify. One coupon per household. 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