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PHOTO: A VA health care worker administers a vaccine to a veteran at the tri-state COVID vaccination clinic in Portsmouth the weekend of March 6-7. (Submitted photo)
PORTSMOUTH, N.H. _– _The Portsmouth Senior Activity Center recently swelled with veterans of all eras and branches of service, as a tri-state team from VA New England Healthcare System conducted a COVID vaccination clinic here for veteran patients living in Maine and New Hampshire.
The event, coordinated with support from Portsmouth community partners, was designed to balance the distribution of COVID-19 vaccine across VA New England HCS. VA Maine and VA Manchester Healthcare Systems were each allotted appointments for 250 veterans, while VA Bedford HCS, Mass., supplied the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine and the clinic staff.
“We knew there were shortages of the Moderna vaccine at other locations, so we came up with the idea to help our veterans at our sister New England facilities by sharing our supply of Pfizer,” Mary Anderson, VA Bedford’s associate director for patient care said.
Anderson’s idea was to hold the vaccination clinic in an area that would be easily accessible to both Maine and New Hampshire veterans and still comply with state guidelines for COVID precautions.
Leadership of all three facilities stated that collaboration and sharing of best practices made implementation of a large-scale and quickly orchestrated event like this one seamless, even across state lines.
“Our [VA New England HCS] integrated healthcare system is stronger than any one facility and what happened here today is proof of that,” VA Maine Associate Director for Business Operations Russell Armstead said. “This is huge – this is what partnership looks like.”
Veterans who came to the event admitted they weren’t sure of what to expect, especially those who came from Maine, like Army veteran Janet Paquin, a crane operator. But they realized their fears were unfound.
“I am thrilled to have been able to be here today to receive my vaccine, and I, like millions of people, are ready get life back to normal,” Paquin said on the way out.
Anderson, a nurse herself, said the vaccination clinic is a wonderful place to work because the veterans are hopeful and happy to receive the vaccine.
“A lot of people go into nursing to make a difference,” she said. “For me, this makes a difference. These Veterans are interested in being able to see their children and grandchildren again. We might not get back to normal, but we can give them hope about opening up a new world.”
