- April 19, 2024
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Carmelo Giglio, a Palm Coast resident for the past 15 years, had no hesitation getting his vaccine, administered by retired nurse Susan Fabbie.
Emergency Planner Sue Reese and Communications Manager Gretchen Smith
Bob Snyder, DOH health officer, rode his wife's bicycle around the fairgrounds to check on each station and boost morale.
Bob Snyder, health officer
Judy Mazzella, volunteer coordinator with Flagler Volunteer Services, and Ed Barth, with REACT
Health Department employees Winston Dookhran, Margalie Jean-Pierre, Natalia Zintchenko and Michelle Morrell
Caryn Prather, Flagler County community paramedic
Shirley Wilson said her friend in North Carolina had to drive 90 minutes for an appointment. Wilson is grateful to live in a place like Flagler that is small enough where you can bump into your friends when you go to the store.
Jenny Brady and Susan Fabbie prepare Carmelo Giglio for his vaccine.
DOH Emergency Planner Sue Reese has been "amazing," said retired nurse Evelyn Close, who added that all the nurses feel like family at the DOH.
DOH's Belisia Velez said people were grateful after they received their vaccines. Of about 1,200 vaccines administered by Jan. 7, none had adverse reactions to the vaccine.
On one end of Flagler County, Health Officer Bob Snyder and the staff of the Department of Health are enjoying compliments about the orderly and friendly administration of COVID-19 vaccines, at the fairgrounds. They are handling the happy people who got the appointments.
One woman who waited in line all night for a vaccine on Jan. 2 was so happy she is now volunteering at the fairgrounds. Another woman, Shirley Wilson, told staff, “You guys are the best. I can’t believe how organized you are.”
On the other end of the county, however, Emergency Management Director Jonathan Lord and his staff are answering phones nonstop and enduring angry complaints from people who can’t get appointments due to the short supply of vaccines.
“When people are led to believe that something they need will be available, and it’s not, no wonder they’re upset,” Flagler County Administrator Jerry Cameron said.
The county, with help from the cities of Palm Coast and Flagler Beach, has started to use a waiting list and will be calling residents back when more vaccines are available. A statewide system could be introduced soon to manage the rollout.
Still, although the state, the DOH and the Emergency Operations Center are working together to administer the vaccines quickly, Snyder said, “We’re going to get a black eye because the supplies are just not available yet.”
The doses are distributed by the state on a per capita basis to each county, but that doesn’t account for the percentage of seniors in each county. That’s one reason Flagler may have such a supply challenge: Florida is 21% over 65, while Flagler is 31% over 65.
“We have 36,000 people in our community over the age of 65, and so far we have received 1,700 doses in two weeks,” Snyder said. “Do the math. You can see why people are frustrated.”
Gov. Ron DeSantis, on Dec. 10 announced the state’s plan for vaccine distribution. The first priority was long-term care facilities and health care workers, he said. “Finally, as the vaccine supply increases over the next few weeks, we want to start getting it out to our elderly residents as well as those who may have significant comorbidities.”
On Dec. 23, DeSantis issued an executive order saying ages 65 and up were to be prioritized.
Cameron and Lord both said that left the EOC with little time to prepare for the opening of appointments for vaccinations on Jan. 4.
Typically, even in days leading up to hurricanes, when the EOC has its heaviest call loads, the phone lines are still only at 40% capacity. By contrast, Cameron said the sudden demand for vaccine appointments “brought it to its knees.”
Of all the people who are unhappy with how the call system performed Jan. 4, “We’re the least happy,” Cameron said. “This is the first time that we have not been able to respond to meet a challenge.”
Cameron sympathizes with Lord’s difficulties.
“Jonathan is almost a perfectionist when it comes to emergencies,” Cameron said. “He was literally almost sick because of the way this unfolded.”
Palm Coast City Manager Matt Morton said he was alerted to the vaccine appointment problem by Palm Coast Connect. The city’s engagement platform finds patterns of complaints, and vaccine appointments quickly rose to the top. Citizen Engagement Cynthia Schweers said that on Jan. 4, she called the EOC and arranged to assist; as a result, her staff has added 40-50 people to the county's waiting list per day. That’s in addition to hundreds added to the waiting list by EOC staff the week ending Jan. 8.
“We just realized there was a gap,” Morton said. “Everybody is working together.”
Although city workers didn’t have any special information beyond what the EOC had directed them to say, Schweers said many callers were relieved to get through to someone at the city.
“A lot were crying and happy that we went above and beyond,” Schweers said.
No matter how robust the online system, she said, many 65-and-older residents will always be more comfortable using the phone.
Meanwhile, during the vaccination event every day, Snyder rides a Town and Country cruiser bicycle — his wife’s — from station to station on the dirt paths at the fairgrounds to check on everyone’s progress. The bicycle is effective because he doesn’t add another car to clog up traffic, and it also brings a smile to everyone’s faces.
Staff members have taken to humming the Wicked Witch theme music from “The Wizard of Oz” when they see him coming their way, and Snyder loves it.
“I wave to everybody, give them the thumbs up, ask if everyone is happy,” he said.
And the staff’s morale is high, despite the trying circumstances.
About 30 retired nurses were hired about eight months ago for the COVID-19 testing effort, which continues at a pace of more than 75 people tested every afternoon. The vaccination effort has not replaced their testing duties; it’s been added to their duties. Now, many of them are working up to 40 hours per week with only a 30-minute break in between vaccinations and testing shifts.
“These retired nurses that are doing this — very impressive,” said DOH-Flagler Emergency Planner Sue Reese said that if these nurses didn’t rise to the occasion, “The community would be in trouble.”
One retired nurse, Susan Fabbie, acknowledged that administering tests and vaccines in a pandemic is dangerous. But, she said, “That’s nursing.”
She said the camaraderie of working with the other nurses is rewarding.
Another retired nurse, Jenny Brady said she doesn’t see herself as a hero, although she has heard many people call health care workers heroes since the pandemic began.
“We’re really just doing our job,” she said. “You’re born with a servant's heart if you’re in this field.”
It’s possible that Joe Vece, a motorcycle enthusiast, wasn’t too impressed with Snyder’s bike. But the 65-year-old was impressed with Snyder’s ability to oversee the DOH’s efforts. He said getting a shot was “a great experience.”
Vece’s wife is asthmatic. She used to work for Flagler Schools but retired early because of concerns about the pandemic, so they both have been very careful and don’t leave the house often. Getting the vaccine will calm their nerves to some degree, although Vece’s wife isn’t 65 years old yet and so hasn’t attempted to get an appointment for her own vaccine.
Vece encouraged others not to be nervous and to get the vaccine if they can. “It’s not worse than a shingles shot, believe me,” he said. “I don’t understand why people are afraid to get it. They need to stop listening to all the hype and do what’s best for everybody.”
