Jan 6, 2021 6 min read

Alena Zborowski, a paramedic with Ambulance & Chair Service, was one of the first to receive the COVID-19 vaccine among first responders in Washington County.

“My No. 1 thing is I have a 7-month-old daughter who I didn’t want to get sick,” she said in a recent interview.

On Dec. 21, Zborowski got the first dose of the vaccine at Washington Hospital, as Washington Health System has been providing the vaccine to medical providers within their district, including EMTs, paramedics, etc.

“They were very professional and made everything feel very comfortable,” Zborowski said. “It was very quick and efficient.”

Zborowski served as a medic in the U.S. Army, stationed for a year in 2015 in Korea, she said.

“My main job was vaccinating troops,” she said. “I guess that made me more trusting of the process.”

There’s been some hesitation when it comes to the vaccine. About 60% of Ambulance & Chair employees opted to be vaccinated in the first few available rounds, according to executive director Larry Pollock. The rest have either refused or opted to wait until a later round is available.

Pollock said the vaccine, which has been authorized for emergency use but not yet FDA-approved, is not required for their employees. He said their goal is for all the employees who do want the vaccine to receive it by the end of the month. As of Monday, 47 employees had been vaccinated.

“The folks who want it, want it right away,” Pollock said. “But the timing of this is unique, when there’s a lot of precautions and standards that we have to follow through this process.”

Pollock said most of their employees who got the vaccine received it through Washington Health System or Monongahela Valley Hospital.

The Washington City Fire Department also had the opportunity to receive the vaccine last month through WHS. By the end of this week, about half the department – 10 firefighters – will have opted to receive it, according to Chief Gerald Coleman.

“With it being so new, there’s still a lot of questions people have,” Coleman said. “I don’t fault anyone for not getting it. I certainly respect everybody’s right to make a decision based on what’s best for them and their family.”

Coleman said he received the vaccine Dec. 26, and said he hasn’t had any side effects.

“My decision was based on not wanting to take the virus home to my family,” he said. “By no means am I lowering my guard with the PPE and the distancing.”

Similarly, Zborowski said the only side effect she had was a sore arm. Her baby’s pediatrician even encouraged her to continue breast-feeding her baby, Athena, after receiving the vaccine.

She said some of her loved ones have recently been diagnosed with COVID-19.

“My experience with this side effect, a sore arm, is nothing compared to what they’re going through,” she said. “Listen to the people and the doctors who have looked into this and the people who have gotten it and experienced it.”

South Strabane Fire Chief Scott Reese said four people in his department, himself included, opted to receive the vaccine through WHS. He said the department doesn’t mandate this or any vaccine. Volunteers and career staff were among those who refused the COVID-19 vaccine, opting to wait for a later round of vaccinations.

“I think most people were apprehensive about getting it,” he said. “I hope more people get involved in this, so we can move forward and in the right direction.”

Allegheny Health Network is also providing vaccines to its 15 EMS affiliates in Washington County, including Canonsburg, Peters Township and Fort Cherry ambulance services, and medically equipped fire departments in North Strabane, Peters, Cecil, Hanover, Ellsworth and McDonald.

Robert Twaddle, director of prehospital care services for AHN, said they wrapped up scheduling first-round vaccines for those providers Tuesday. Between 200 and 300 EMS providers were vaccinated, he said.

“When we put our initial request out, our numbers were not as high as we had hoped for folks willing to take the vaccine,” Twaddle said.

After providing more information and holding virtual roundtable sessions to answer questions, those numbers went up “dramatically,” he said.

“We still have some people who do not want the vaccine at this point, which is fine,” Twaddle said. “I think that social media has a lot to play into it, but the facts are readily available. If you go in and look at the facts and all the info surrounding the vaccine, it’s pretty stable.”

In the North Strabane Fire Department, about 50% of their medical providers opted to be vaccinated, according to assistant Chief Rich Yosi.

“We made it completely voluntary to those personnel,” he said. “We offered it, but we’re not going to force them to take the vaccine.”

Yosi said the process went smoothly, and no one has complained of any side effects. Yosi also said that regardless of whether personnel received the shot or not, they haven’t changed any of their policies regarding PPE or CDC guidelines.

“The CDC says that even if you receive the vaccine there are several strains out there that you could still get,” Yosi said. “You still run the risks of carrying it and passing it on to someone else, so all the CDC protocols are still being followed.”

Twaddle said those who wanted the vaccine were pretty enthusiastic to receive it from AHN, especially frontline workers who are going into homes with positive cases and providing care to at-risk patients. Twaddle said those EMS responses take place in “uncontrolled environments,” where there’s potential for more risk and exposure.

“One of the worst things we can do is bring something home to our families,” he said. “That’s why we’re trying to put every precaution in place.”

As a paramedic, Twaddle said a phrase he hears often among his EMS colleagues is that “they’re tired.” For that reason, he hopes the vaccine will “shine some light on a dark space for us.”

“The excitement is there for the EMS providers to spread some positivity in hopefully ending the pandemic in any way that we can,” Twaddle said.