DOCTOR: ‘I’VE GOT TO PROTECT THE GUYS TOO’
Gynecologist offers COVID-19 vaccines — for women and men
With most people wanting to get the COVID-19 shot, vaccination clinics have been set up in pharmacies, municipal garages and shopping malls.
How about the gynecologist office?
That’s the case with Dr. Katherine Boyd, a Sterling Heights-based gynecologist who is providing a two-shot dose of Pfizer. Although her office specializes in obstetrics, gynecology and women’s health issues, Boyd says anyone is welcome to get the two-dose vaccine there.
“I’ve got to protect the guys too,” she said Tuesday with a laugh. “I’m sure it’s the first time many of them have been to a gynecologist’s office. But the bottom line is: This is a public health issue.”
Boyd, who is affiliated with McLaren Macomb hospital and has been serving Macomb County patients for more than 30 years, learned of an availability of the doses last week through the Physicians Alliance, an organization of private doctors.
After making an inquiry and receiving instructions, her office received a shipment of 1,170 Pfizer doses on Friday. In two weeks, she expects to receive another batch for the second shot of the vaccination in the twoshot process.
Since the doses arrived in special refrigerator because they require ultra-cold storage facilities, she only has 14 days from last Friday to distribute the shots.
So for the past few days, her office on Van Dyke Avenue behind Ike’s Restaurant, the “phones have been ringing off the hook” for appointments. Her staff has had to put in eve
ning hours to keep with demand. The federal government will reimburse Boyd $14 per shot, but she has to pay for the overtime incurred for keeping the office open evening hours.
On Tuesday alone, Boyd and her staff administered 60 doses. But the office staff and patients seem upbeat by the prospect of getting vaccinated and doing their part to curtail the community spread.
Patients waiting for their shots talk about losing loved ones to the pandemic. “We’ve heard a lot of stories,” she said.
Tammy Patton, an elected Clinton Township trustee and longtime patient of Boyd, said the physician asked her to help in publicizing the availability of the Pfizer doses. She gladly obliged.
“She knew I could help spread the word further in the communities because she knows I advocate for our community in various ways,” Patton said. “As always, I was elated to do so and bring excitement about being chosen to distribute 1,170 doses only helped fuel my excitement for those who have been waiting to receive one.”
With Michigan being named by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as an epicenter of the virus and deaths on the increase, it’s more important than ever to meet the coronavirus head-on.
The state on Tuesday paused the use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine following a recommendation by the federal government after learning about six cases of a type of very rare blood clots in females who received the vaccine. Few people in Boyd’s office mentioned the delay.
“The big picture is we can’t eradicate this virus until we get enough vaccine in people’s arms to stop it,” Boyd said. “Everyone knows why they need the vaccine and want to get it over with.”
To sign up for a free appointment, call 586-5737222. The medical offices of Dr. Katherine Boyd are located at 38600 Van Dyke, Sterling Heights, suite 130.