Eagle Pharmacy has partnered with Wright County Public Health in distributing the COVID-19 vaccinations. They have been allowed to do this because they are part of the Community Pharmacy Enhanced Services Network (known as CPESN). They’ve been working together since the second week in February in an effort to get the doses in the arms of residents as fast as possible. Eagle Pharmacy’s doses come from a federal allotment rather than the state, which is where Public Health gets theirs.
“It’s been such a good collaboration in our county,” said Andrew Wagner of Eagle Pharmacy.
He explained that the partnership has allowed them to share a list of who has signed up for the vaccine, eliminating cross-over patients. What this means is that some people, in the hopes of getting the vaccine as soon as possible, register for the shot in more than one place. When they get called, they may forget to call back the other place(s) that they have registered, leaving those facilities to call in people on a waiting list at the last moment. For this reason, Wagner explained that the pharmacy no longer has online registration available. Instead, they would like you to call their COVID number, 515-293-4493 (note, this is different from the pharmacy number), and register. However, you may still use online registration if going through Public Health.
“We get between 50 and 100 calls a day to check and see if people are still on the waiting list,” said Wagner.
He assures everyone they are. In fact, they have two people managing those lists.
“We are very fortunate to have everyone on their A game…and Sandy has been so good in the county about getting doses out,” he said.
For right now, like Public Health, Eagle Pharmacy is giving out the Moderna vaccines. Both places will schedule your second shot before you leave from the first shot. According to Wagner, Eagle Pharmacy has been doing about 100 shots per week. While they give shots during regular business hours, they have stayed open as late as 9 p.m. to get them distributed. They’ve also held a couple extended-hours Saturday, giving shots from 8 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. – whatever it takes to vaccinate Wright County.
“I so want to get back to ‘normal,’ which is why we took on distributing shots,” said Wagner. “I was a little worried at first that we wouldn’t get rid of all the doses, but it’s been no problem.”
In fact, Eagle Pharmacy is ready to go one step further. They have worked out a plan to help out Wright County Public Health and take over their vaccination clinics they have been holding at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Eagle Grove each Tuesday since the shots became available. That will allow Public Health more time to concentrate their efforts on the other towns in Wright County since Eagle Grove has the pharmacy available for shots as well.
Wagner encourages everyone to call in and schedule their vaccinations, whether they are on your phase or not. They will vaccinate according to the CDC recommended phases, but they want your names on the list so when they have the available doses, they can call the next people who qualify, and they don’t know you qualify if you aren’t on the list. They are currently vaccinating those 65 and older or those with chronic diseases.
Wagner said Eagle Pharmacy is excited to announce they will be receiving 558 doses of the Pfizer vaccine that they will be distributing this Sunday, March 21 to 500 people at Memorial Hall. The clinic will start at 10 a.m. If interested, you can call 515-293-4493 during pharmacy hours to schedule an appointment. NOTE this is a different number than the main pharmacy number, as they now have a dedicated COVID vaccine line. If you have questions whether or not you qualify for this clinic, you are also encouraged to call the above listed hotline number.
“COVID created a sense of being so alone. We don’t want to perpetuate mental health problems,” Wagner said of the pharmacy's dedication to doing all they can to help distribute the vaccinations as quickly as possible in Wright County.
As for what the future holds with COVID vaccines, Wagner said it just depends. It will be something you need to be vaccinated more than once for – like the flu. He is not sure whether this will mean both a flu AND a COVID shot in the fall, or if science will be able to put the COVID vaccine in with the regular flu shot like they were able to do with the H1N1 virus.
In the meantime, it’s important to remember that there are still many people who have not had the opportunity to be vaccinated for COVID. Please continue to wear masks and social distance. We are getting there, one step at a time, so let’s keep moving forward in the right direction so we can all get back to spending time with each other, safely, in public settings.
“It’s a team effort,” said Wagner.
