As of March 10th, the Gorham Fire Department has vaccinated over 1400 people including first responders as well as teaching staff over the age of 60 from Gorham and Windham.
Chief Ken Fickett and Lily McMillan, a firefighter and a paramedic, have been running the program and will continue to vaccinate people over 60 as they receive more COVID-19 vaccines, but the supply continues to be erratic.
Fickett and McMillan have traveled to Windham, Westbrook, Sebago and Naples to give vaccinations, in addition to the ones they do in Gorham. Portland and Scarborough Fire Departments were also doing vaccinations but stopped because of the complications of getting the vaccine and the amount of paperwork required.
Each time the Fire Department runs a vaccination clinic, they need 1-2 people to give the shots, 1-2 people to get the vaccine ready, 4-6 to deal with the paperwork as well as 1-2 greeters. Fickett and McMillan work on the paperwork as they have time.
The Town is paying overtime to people who are working on the vaccinations and most people receiving the vaccine are covered by insurance but shots are covered regardless. Fickett expects that the overtime costs will be balanced by the insurance payments and state reimbursements.
One issue that has arisen, is that people have lost the vaccine record cards they were given, showing they had been vaccinated. Fickett reminds people to keep the cards in a safe place so they can show them should they need them to prove they have been vaccinated.
The Gorham Fire Department has been rolling out the Moderna vaccine, and now Johnson & Johnson, to first responders and other critical employees in phases 1a and 1b despite having limited resources and staffing. They have not been allowed to offer the vaccine to larger groups within the public because there is a limited supply. Despite this, they are making an impact on the local vaccination effort.