SAFETY FIRST

EMS personnel start receiving COVID-19 vaccine

CONSHOHOCKEN » Two responders from Narberth Ambulance Monday morning were administered the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, becoming the first Emergency Medical Services (EMS) providers in Montgomery County to receive it.

The vaccines were administered by Dr. Alvin Wang, chief medical officer for the Montgomery County Department of Public Safety, through a joint operation with the Office of Public Health. Lt. Joe Yochim of Narberth Ambulance and Battalion Chief Anthony McGrail of Second Alarmers Rescue Squad were the first to receive the shots with members

of the media and county officials watching.

County Commissioners’ Chairwoman Dr. Valerie A. Arkoosh opened the event at the Montgomery County Public Safety Training Campus in Conshohocken.

Arkoosh announced last week that the county Office of Public Health received 2,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine. She said last Wednesday during a weekly update that those first doses would be used to “vaccinate paramedics and EMTs, our public health nurses who will be administering vaccine and other critical frontline workforce.”

“We believe that this is the first of a regular weekly

“We will take whatever we can get. We are prepared to receive both (Pfizer and Moderna) vaccines and we will not turn anything down. We’ve been told that we will get a weekly distribution but we haven’t gotten confirmation of that yet.”

— County Commissioners’ Chairwoman Dr. Valerie A. Arkoosh

shipment of vaccine but we do not yet have confirmation on the frequency or on the number of doses of vaccine that we will receive,” Arkoosh said.

The Moderna delivery came on the heels of the start of vaccinations a week earlier as county hospitals received vaccine doses from Pfizer.

According to Pennsylvania Department of Health data, a total of 7,800 doses of vaccine were distributed directly to the county’s nine hospitals through Dec. 22 to vaccinate frontline doctors and nurses.

“We will take whatever we can get. We are prepared to receive both (Pfizer and Moderna) vaccines and we will not turn anything down,” Arkoosh said. “We’ve been told that we will get a weekly distribution but we haven’t gotten confirmation of that

yet.”

Officials said last week that vaccinations will begin at county long-term care facilities for residents

and staff through a separate contract between the federal government and CVS and Walgreens pharmacies.

PHOTO COURTESY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY Second Battalion Chief Anthony McGrail from the Second Alarmers Rescue Squad gets a vaccine shot from Dr. Alvin Wang, chief medical officer for the Montgomery County Department of Public Safety.

PHOTO COURTESY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY Montgomery County Commissioners’ Chairwoman Dr. Valerie Arkoosh welcomes media and county officials to an event marking the first vaccines administered by the county to First Responders.

PHOTO COURTESY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY Lieutenant Joe Yochim of Narberth Ambulance receives a vaccine shot administered by Dr. Alvin Wang, chief medical officer for the Montgomery County Department of Public Safety.

PHOTO COURTESY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY Lt. Joe Yochim of Narberth Ambulance talks about feeling more comfortable and safe after getting the vaccine and getting it publicly as one of the first First Responders in the county to receive it.