'A new chapter': Flandreau Santee Sioux distributes first COVID-19 vaccines
Danielle Ferguson, Sioux Falls Argus Leader
Dr. Courtney Keith unexpectedly received the "best box ever" Monday morning.
She'd heard the FDA approved Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine Friday, but she was amazed at how quickly it ended up in the freezer of her small tribal clinic in northern South Dakota.
Keith, a family physician at the Flandreau Santee Sioux Health Clinic, was one of the Flandreau community's first to receive the vaccine Tuesday.
"There are reports of minor adverse reactions, but the relief of this being hopefully the beginning of a new chapter is so huge," she said.
The Flandreau Santee Sioux Health Clinic received 100 doses of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine Monday morning, along with other clinics throughout South Dakota. The clinic plans to administer the vaccine to the first priority population in groups of 10, which is how many doses are in one vial. The tribe identified 64 healthcare workers to vaccinate in phase 1A, said clinic CEO Cindy Jacobs.
The clinic planned to start giving doses on Wednesday, but news of potentially hazardous winter weather sped up the timeline and 10 people were lined up to receive the vaccine Tuesday.
More:What vaccination rates in rural America tell us about the advent of COVID-19 vaccines
More:Here's what to know about the COVID-19 vaccine in South Dakota
And those who did proudly stood in front of a staff-made selfie board, including Keith.
"Not having to worry to the same degree hopefully will be a huge weight off everybody’s shoulders," she said before getting the vaccine.
Keith, 40, wanted to be one of the first to receive the vaccine to show the tribal community, which she says has historically been shortchanged by the medical world, that the vaccine is safe.
"I work with a clinic that has had an abusive history with medicine," she said. "The reason I want to be one of the first (to get the vaccine) is to show that I have confidence and so six weeks down the road when people are thinking and saying, 'Should I get it,' I can say that I’m alive and I’m doing okay."
All tribes across the country were given the option to receive the vaccine through their respective states or by working directly with Indian Health Service and the federal government.
Indian Health Service expected to receive an initial allocation of 68,425 doses of COVID-19 vaccines. The Great Plains region, which includes South Dakota, North Dakota, Nebraska and Iowa, was expected to receive 1,950 doses of the Pfizer vaccine and 3,000 doses of Moderna.
All of the nine tribes located in South Dakota have chosen to work with Indian Health Services.
The Flandreau Santee Sioux chose to work with IHS because things have been going "smoothly," Jacobs said. The clinic has been able to get personal protective equipment allocations from IHS when needed, she added.
The Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe chose to receive the Moderna vaccine because it's easier to transport and store. Pfizer's vaccine comes in minimum doses of 500, too much for the small clinic to keep at the necessary super-freezing temperature it requires.
Beyond the first two batches of 100 doses, Jacobs said the clinic wasn't sure how many and when they'd receive more of the vaccine. The first groups getting the vaccine are made up of healthcare workers from different areas of the clinic to ensure there is enough staff in each department should some develop adverse reactions to the vaccine.
Any leftover vaccine can be used in the next tiered priority populations, Jacobs said, a number they're still working to finalize.
Though the next few months are uncertain, Jacobs said today is "amazing" and hopefully a step to a new chapter in the pandemic.
"People are fatigued," she said a few days before the vaccine arrived. "We’re really excited there’s light at the end of the tunnel, though I say that cautiously. We’ll have to continue to mask, per CDC guidelines. But at least we know the vaccine is here."
Email reporter Danielle Ferguson at dbferguson@argusleader.com or follow on Twitter at @DaniFergs.
