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Jennifer Raymond, a nurse at Ascension St. John Jane Phillips in Bartlesville, was the first of 150 frontline health care workers to receive the initial dose of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine administered by the Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH).

Receiving the vaccine means everything to the health care workers and their safety at Ascension. Raymond (pictured receiving the vaccine) said she has hope that there will be an end to the coronavirus pandemic now that the vaccine is being administered. She said she had the virus once. She said she's afraid to get it again.

Raymond, who works in the hospital's hot  zone, says the pandemic has been tiring and emotional. She said she gets choked up thinking about the families and how much suffering they've encountered during the pandemic. She said they do everything they can for their patients to make the families feel comfortable.

Considering what she sees in the hospital's hot zone every day, Raymond begged you to please wear a mask. Raymond said wearing a mask shows gratitude towards those that work in the hot zone. She said they're seeing the results from Thanksgiving now: their beds are full and people are on ventilators. She said they'll see the results of Christmas before long.

If you do plan to gather for the holidays, Raymond would ask that you wear a mask and social distance. Raymond encourages you to do your part to stop the spread of COVID-19. She said she is excited to receive the vaccine and can't wait until they're able to administer the vaccine to the general public.

Mike Moore, Ascension Bartlesville's Chief Operating Officer (COO) said they're excited to finally be able to take an offensive approach to the coronavirus pandemic. He said the goal is to get 450 frontline health care workers vaccinated in the next three days. This includes care givers and care giver support staff.

COO Moore said everyone will receive a shot that wanted a shot. Moore said they've invited Bartlesville Ambulance in to receive the vaccine. He said they've also invited some physicians that are not directly associated with Ascension in Bartlesville.

According to Moore, the vaccine is 95-percent effective. Moore said they want to ensure that all of their care givers have access to the vaccine and that they are creating a safe environment for everybody.

The Oklahoma State Department of Health has about a 40-percent acceptance rate for the vaccine. Moore said Ascension in Bartlesville has a 55-percent acceptance rate for the vaccine. He said the other 45-percent has opted out.

Moore said they're in training to see how the vaccine is handled and administered. He said they'll get to a point where their staff can administer the vaccine themselves. He said they're assuming that the public will have access to the vaccine sooner than we think.

OSDH Wellness Coordinator Johnna Sue Blair said getting the vaccine out as quickly as they have been able to get it out has been phenomenal. She said those that received the first doses of the Pfizer vaccine on Monday will receive their second dose on Monday, Jan. 11th, 2021.

The COVID-19 vaccine first arrived in Oklahoma on Monday after it received emergency approval from the FDA last week. Oklahoma is expected to receive 33,000 doses of vaccine in the initial shipment.

The state is using a phased approach for distribution of the vaccine based on priority populations. Phase 1 includes long-term care residents and staff, health care workers providing direct inpatient COVID-19 care, public health staff conducting frontline COVID-19 pandemic mitigation, and Oklahoma State licensed Emergency Medical Technicians and paramedics. The transition to the following phases will be based on vaccine availability and population uptake.