OHCA The Oregon Caregiver Spring Summer 2021

www.ohca.com SPRING/SUMMER 2021 The Oregon Caregiver 7 FEATURE Marquis Newberg made history on December 21, 2020, when one of its residents became the first Oregonian in long term care to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Joscelyn Cook, the current administrator of Marquis Tualatin and former administrator of Marquis Newberg, witnessed history in the making. “That was a very emotional day. From when they brought the vaccines into the facility, it was like, you were shipwrecked and you finally saw your help on the island, and the vaccines were here to come help,” said Cook. For months, Cook had heard rumblings about the vaccines, but reality did not start to set in her until she physically saw the vaccine vials enter her facility. “I can’t really pinpoint anything else that was going to change the trajectory of where we were heading. We were wearing our PPE and we’ve got all the control protocols and policies in place and outbreaks were still happening. I just felt like this was the only thing that was going to change it,” said Cook. This moment marked the beginning of the vaccine rollout to long term care communities across Oregon. As part of the federal Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program, Consonus Pharmacy, Walgreens, and CVS sched- uled first, second, and third vaccine clinics at skilled nursing, assisted living, and residential care communities from December through April. At Cook’s current building, Marquis Tualatin, 98 percent of residents and 90 percent of staff received the vaccine during the initial vaccine clinics. Cook attributes the high vaccine uptake rates to her residents and staff understanding the importance of doing their part. “Seeing firsthand what happens when COVID-19 spreads and how easily it can spread, there is a lot of guilt that comes with being a positive COVID-19 case as a staff person or even as a resident because of the knowledge of how it can spread so quickly. Nobody ever wants to be the one, the patient zero, so we at Marquis did a lot of education,” said Cook. “It was almost like we each felt that there’s no way around it. We’re getting the vac- cines; we have to get them.” In preparation for the vaccine clinics, Cook set up small groups comprised of about two to three employees and had conversations with each of them about factual vaccine information that she pulled directly from trusted sources, like the Centers for Disease and Prevention Control (CDC), public health, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Her approach focused on myth-busting for her staff, but she said most of her residents were onboard from the get-go. “There were still things that staff could go do. For the residents, they didn’t get that. I think they had a bigger void with everything. They didn’t get to see their families in the same way they could before. You come here and your bubble is the employees. I think they saw the vaccine as an even bigger sign of hope to be able to reunite with their loved ones and still live the best rest of their lives,” said Cook. The vaccine was their ticket to getting back to normal. Many residents in nursing facilities and licensed communi- ties did not hesitate to make their vaccination appointments. By April, all 41 residents of Rosewood Memory Care in Hillsboro were vaccinated. Angela Hernandez, the executive director of the community says her residents have “That was a very emotional day. From when they brought the vaccines into the facility, it was like, you were shipwrecked and you finally saw your help on the island, and the vaccines were here to come help.” – Joscelyn Cook, Former Administrator, Marquis Newberg CONTINUES » Joscelyn Cook holds a box of COVID-19 vaccines at the first long term care vaccine clinic in Oregon. Fee Stublefield, founder and CEO of The Springs Living, greets residents and staff at the first vaccine clinic at Greer Gardens.