After a freezer containing the precious Modern COVID-19 vaccines that required refrigeration broke down in a Seattle hospital, the medical team struggled to vaccinate as many people as possible in the clinics at the University of Seattle and the University of Washington.
It turned out to be one of the wildest vaccine launches of all time, as doctors rushed to give it to people before it expired Thursday night and Friday morning, the Seattle Times reported.
“I got a call this evening at 9 am and I heard that a Kaiser freezer was dropped and we could help vaccinate people before the doses expire at 5:30 am?” Jenny Brackett, an assistant administrator at the University of Washington, told the Seattle Times.
Between the Northwest and Montlake locations of the UW Medical Center, they had 800 unexpected doses to administer.
Swedish non-profit healthcare system tweeted on Thursday night it had 588 consultations for Modern coronavirus vaccine available from 11 pm to 2 am
The cause of the malfunction of the freezer at Kaiser Permanente was not immediately clarified.
“It was late, there was monitoring – someone saw it and quickly thought of taking it to someone who could manage it,” said Cassie Sauer, president of the Washington State Hospital Association.
Sauer said that no doses were left unused and 1,600 total doses were administered at all sites.