Douglas ESD and Aviva Health team up again to offer second doses of the COVID-19 vaccine

Feb. 20, 2021, ROSEBURG, Ore. —Aviva Health and Douglas ESD partnered to offer another invite-only mass vaccine event Saturday, Feb. 20, at the Douglas County Fairgrounds. The health care organization provided 710 second-dose COVID-19 vaccines to individuals who fall within Oregon Health Authority’s (OHA) Phase 1a vaccine prioritization schedule and received their first dose at Aviva Health’s Jan. 23 mass vaccination event.

This event comes on the heels of a Thursday mass vaccination effort when close to 80 Douglas County seniors received their first dose of the vaccine.

More than 120 Aviva Health and Douglas ESD staff along with several community volunteers helped make the fifth mass vaccine clinic event a success. Use of the county fairgrounds – a critical element to the success of events this size – was made possible by the support of the Douglas County Board of Commissioners.

“These second-dose vaccinations are important to ensure our community members are fully protected from COVID-19, and we’re grateful to again partner with Douglas ESD to bring this service to Douglas County,” says KC Bolton, CEO of Aviva Health. “It’s our hope these large-scale vaccination events will soon allow us to begin transitioning our vaccination strategy to an in-clinic mode.”

“As COVID-19 continues to impact our community, the partnership between Douglas ESD and Aviva Health continues to ensure that vaccinations are administered in a timely, caring and efficient manner,” says Michael Lasher, Douglas ESD superintendent. “The success of the mass vaccine events remains tied to the compassion and professionalism displayed by our respective employees and volunteers, including Douglas County Fairgrounds staff.”

Since it began holding mass vaccine clinics, Aviva Health, a member of the Douglas County COVID-19 Response Team (DCCRT), and designated local COVID-19 vaccinator, continues to help lead efforts to vaccinate community members with the COVID-19 vaccine. The organization has put nearly 2,900 vaccinations in the arms of citizens of Douglas County. That number will continue to grow in the coming days, weeks and months.

Public health experts say the vaccine, in combination with other sensible safety measures like masking, social distancing and handwashing, offers the best protection from COVID-19 and continued community spread.

Aviva Health and Douglas ESD are planning to offer additional opportunities for community members to receive COVID-19 vaccines. The latest eligibility list published by OHA is available at https://covidvaccine.oregon.gov/

Aviva Health has created an FAQ to answer questions related to COVID-19 regarding availability and scheduling: https://aviva.health/covid-19-vaccine-faqs/

For updated local COVID-19 information and resources visit, https://douglascounty-oregon.us/ and http://douglaspublichealthnetwork.org/, or sign up to receive the DCCRT Daily COVID-19 update via the e-Newsletter at: https://bit.ly/3aHy0g0.