Waiting game

Kim Morran has to remind herself to breathe every now and then.

The director of O'Brien County Public Health has been swamped over the past month during the initial rollout phases of the COVID-19 vaccine. There are plenty of arms to go around, but the vaccine supply has been limited.

"It has been extremely busy and stressful," Morran said. "I only have one nurse and myself, and a secretary. We have utilized volunteers to assist in the office and for the larger clinics."

O'Brien County is currently in Phase 1b of rollout and is finishing up Tier 1. Morran expected to move into Tier 2 by the end of this week. She said her department has been working hard to get people age 65 and older vaccinated, as O'Brien County has a sizeable elderly population.

"This is a large group to get vaccinated. We are trying to focus on age," she said.

So far, O'Brien County Public Health has held two vaccination clinics in Hartley, one in Sanborn, one in Primghar, one in Paullina, two in Sutherland and two in Sheldon. The clinics are not advertised and are by appointment only.

Morran said the department is planning more clinics in the future as they are based on the amount of available vaccine. Weekly shipments can fluctuate greatly.

"It varies from 0-200 [doses]," she explained. "Some weeks we get zero, some 100, and some 200. Last week we did not get any doses because of shipping delays due to the weather."

Iowa ranks near the bottom of the list among all 50 states regarding both vaccine shipments received and shots in arms. The amount of vaccine received in O'Brien County has been lower than Morran's initial expectations, and she hoped the number of doses would increase in the near future.

"If we could just get more vaccine, we could distribute more doses throughout the county and get people done faster," she said. "We have been asking for more vaccine from the beginning. The problem is not getting the vaccine in people's arms, it is not enough vaccine."

Those who've received the vaccine have been eager to get it and Morran said her office has seen little pushback during the initial rollout phase.

"The hard part has been not enough to go around to please everyone that wants it," she said. "We have not had to waste any vaccines to date."

If you're eligible to receive the vaccine or are 65 or older, you can get in line by calling public health at (712) 957-3191 or (712) 957-0105 and leaving your name, number, city and date of birth.

"I would just ask that everyone be patient," Morran said. "Our goal is to vaccinate people as fast as we have vaccine available."