Residents and staff of the long-term nursing home at the John C. Fremont Hospital in Mariposa County received their first round of the COVID-19 vaccine on December 17th. As they wait for the second round, many people in the facility say they are thrilled to have the protection they need to fight the virus.
The facility is home to 17 residents over 70 years old making them high risk candidates for contracting COVID-19. 73 year old Patricia Wildt says it feels like a privilege to be one of the first in the county to get the vaccine.
“I’m just so excited,” she said. “I can’t wait to get the second.”
The facility received 43 doses of the vaccine from the county’s health department according to Director Katrina Anderson. Despite the nursing home being inside the John C. Fremont Hospital where COVID-19 patients are being treated, Anderson said the facility has not had a single positive case since the start of the pandemic.
“We’ve done everything we need to do to protect the residents but you still have that sense of being a sitting duck,” she said. “You’re just waiting for it to hit your facility."
There are 5 staff members and 1 resident who chose not to get the vaccine, but Anderson said, it feels like they now have a tool to fight the virus.
"It is an absolute massive relief," she said.
The second round of vaccinations will be administered on January 5th.
