Hillcrest employees get COVID vaccine

By Staff, 01/5/21 10:29 AM

PRESCOTT – Dr. Mike Young was first in line for a COVID-19 vaccination Tuesday morning at Hillcrest Care and Rehab.

Dean Sikes and Jennifer Farrell, from AllCare Pharmacy in Arkadelphia, were on hand to vaccinate the staff and administration at Hillcrest. They brought roughly 190 doses and headed to Nashville to do a clinic there later Tuesday.

Sikes said the vaccine is from Moderna and they have thousands of doses in the freezer in Arkadelphia. The vaccination is a two-stage affair with those getting vaccinated required to get a booster 28-days later. Sikes and Farrell will be back at Hillcrest on Feb. 2 for the second round. Sikes said they are going through phases set up by the Arkansas Department of Health, getting medical personnel and first responders vaccinated first.

He added once the first responders are taken care of the vaccine should be available to the general public. These vaccines, he continued, should provide 95 percent protection from the coronavirus. The first shot is to start the process with the body developing antibodies, while the second shot will provide more protection.

In talking about the vaccine, Sikes said AllCare went with Moderna over Phizer because Moderna is easier to handle than the Phizer vaccine. As to side effects, he said there may be some soreness or fever at the injection site, but otherwise there aren’t any.

The injections are given at no cost to the staff, though insurance is billed for the administration of the vaccine. For those without insurance, there’s no charge.

He added AllCare has teams working all over the state doing COVID clinics.