Health District meeting addresses vaccinations, clinic transition

||| FROM SUSAN MCBAIN, theORCASONIAN REPORTER |||

Plans for COVID-19 vaccinations on the island and for the transition to Island Hospital (IH) as operator of a single practice in the Orcas medical center were the focus of the Orcas Island Health Care District’s Jan. 19 regular meeting.

The discussion began with a report by District Superintendent Anne Presson on San Juan County’s vaccination efforts countywide. Presson complimented the County program, which has been rotating vaccination clinics among Orcas, San Juan, and Lopez each week. She noted that Orcas Family Health Clinic (OFHC) has received state approval to be a provider for the COVID vaccine and that Ray’s Pharmacy is in the application process. People in Phase 1a (first responders, medical personnel, and staff and residents over 65 in congregate facilities) having begun receiving second doses, and vaccination for those in Phase 1b Tier 1 (anyone over 65 and anyone 50 and older living in certain multigenerational households) started receiving their first doses this week.

Booking a vaccination appointment, however, is still an issue. Demand is higher than the available supply, and the County does not always receive the full amount of vaccine it requests.

The latest information on booking appointments with the County is HERE. Islanders are advised to keep checking the website for open appointments. The next available appointments will be released on Friday, Jan. 29, at 5 p.m. The vaccination venue will be moving to Orcas Center as the County ramps up, and the County will be holding clinics on Mondays and Fridays starting in early February. For now, the county is staffing clinics on Orcas every Friday.

OFHC is contacting its patients directly with vaccination information. It plans to offer clinics on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons as soon as it receives a vaccine allocation from the state. It is also considering adding a Saturday clinic as vaccine becomes more available. Demand for mobile COVID testing has slowed after a very busy start, and the clinic staff feels that its remaining 400 tests are likely to cover the February-March period until the practice closes.

UW Medicine sent an email to patients throughout its entire system concerning vaccinations, but the information was not specific to the situations on Orcas and Lopez. Four of UW’s Seattle facilities are available for vaccinations for its patients, but plans for vaccinations on the islands are not complete. The Orcas clinic’s phone message (360-376-2561 x2) has the latest information. The clinic will be receiving its supply through the larger UW Medicine system, and details as to timing and logistics are still being worked out. The UW clinic’s Deye Lane location is too small for a full vaccination program, so a different venue is being sought. UW will be using volunteers in order to keep the clinic staff focused on other patient care needs.

IH CEO Charles Hall and other senior IH staff continued their pattern of attending the District’s second monthly meeting to discuss progress and answer questions. Hall noted that IH is in discussions on how best to work with the County health department and EMS on Orcas to take over vaccinations in April.

IH has interviewed all the current Orcas physicians and has an external candidate interview scheduled. Both current mid-level providers (nurse practitioners and physician assistants) and three external candidates have been interviewed, as have all other staff members of both clinics. IH was happy to report that all but one staff member have accepted the job offers, and it expects to have 100% of the staff hired by the end of January. Announcement of the providers and clinic manager should be made in early February. (Dr. David Russell has already announced he will not be joining the IH clinic.)

IH has begun processing Release of Information (ROI) forms submitted by patients. These forms, available on paper at both Orcas clinics, allow transfer of medical records from existing practices to the new IH practice on Orcas. IH expects to have a customized form for Orcas residents available on its website in January; patients will be able to email the completed form to IH and receive a confirmation receipt. IH must receive valid ROIs from all patients wishing to have their medical records transferred to the IH records system.

IH is also adding the Orcas providers to all its insurance contracts. Its next “Community Briefing,” expected to be held the second or third week of February, will include introductions of the providers and staff.

The District’s next regular meeting will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 2, at 5 p.m. The Zoom link for the meeting will be posted a few days in advance on the District’s Meetings Calendar; click the link on Feb. 2 to attend.