- Some Stanford Medicine professors and non-clinical researchers mistakenly received the COVID-19 vaccine ahead of schedule this weekend.
- Stanford Hospital offered vaccination appointments over the weekend and some affiliates thought they might be overdosed.
- In fact, there was no oversupply of vaccines, yet an unconfirmed number of non-clinical staff were vaccinated.
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Some Stanford Medicine affiliates who do not work in patient-oriented functions were able to get a first injection of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine this weekend due to a lack of communication about immediate consultations, the Stanford Daily reported on Tuesday.
The vaccine should be reserved for frontline health workers until next week, with non-clinical affiliates scheduled to receive the vaccine after January 8.
But when Stanford Hospital offered vaccines on Saturday and Sunday – apparently because there were not many vaccination appointments scheduled for the weekend – an unconfirmed number of non-clinical staff received the vaccine.
Stanford Health Care did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment, but Representative Julie Greicius wrote in a statement to the Stanford Daily that Stanford Medicine is administering vaccines to healthcare professionals who serve patients “by invitation only” going forward.
This is not the first mistake in launching the Stanford vaccine. Stanford Medicine was also criticized a week earlier for prioritizing older workers outside the front line, rather than residents and companions in the first round of gunfire. The leadership apologized for the mistake and said it would move to prioritize frontline workers, but now the hospital is dealing with another wave of vaccine controversy.
This time, the problem appeared to be a combination of a lack of communication about the vaccine supply and a lack of eligibility check at the appointments, according to four researchers and teachers who told the Daily that they knew someone who had the vaccine before or witnessed the situation in first hand.
Misinformation about an apparent excess of vaccines has increased confusion
False claims that Stanford Medicine had an excess stock of vaccines and non-clinical affiliates were eligible to have extra doses circulated on email lists and social media over the weekend, which would explain why some affiliates thought that they could go into the hospital and get the shot. In reality, there was no oversupply.
An associate professor, a researcher of non-clinical genetics, told the Daily that he received the vaccine this weekend after hearing about the alleged excess doses of vaccine through the faculty of developmental biology direct mailing list.
“We have just been notified orally that the Pfizer COVID19 vaccine is available to non-clinical staff, apparently they had an excess of it,” said the development biology department email obtained by The Daily. “You need to enter through the lobby of New Stanford Hospital. They are open until 11 pm and tomorrow at 7 am. No special authorization was required.”
The e-mail was then forwarded to the genetics department and the news quickly circulated on social media, the Daily reported.
Although there was not an excessive supply of vaccine at Stanford this weekend, it is true that pharmacists managed to extract an extra dose or two from the Pfizer and Moderna vials.
Also this weekend, Redlands Community Hospital in Southern California reconsidered some extra doses for non-frontline health workers – and a woman who works for Disney – after vaccinating top priority recipients.
This is not the first misstep for the Stanford vaccine
Last week, Stanford Medical faced criticism for overriding frontline residents and companions in the first round of vaccinations. The hospital used an algorithm that prioritized older employees – including bosses and teleworkers – and allowed younger, high-risk workers to escape through the cracks.
Doctors demonstrated at the Stanford Medical Center on December 18 to protest the hospital’s poor distribution of the vaccine. A letter to top Stanford Medicine employees, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, said that only seven residents and fellows were vaccinated in the first round, while senior officials and remote workers came before them.
Stanford Medical issued a statement saying it assumes “full responsibility” for problems with the vaccine’s launch.
“Our intention was to develop an ethical and equitable process for the distribution of the vaccine,” said the statement. “We apologize to our entire community, including our residents, peers and other first-rate caregivers, who acted heroically during our response to the pandemic. We are immediately revising our plan to better sequence the distribution of the vaccine ”.