Veterans receive COVID vaccine at the Biloxi VA Medical Center

The Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System held its second mass COVID-19 vaccination event at the Biloxi VA Medical Center over the weekend.

“I felt really good about it today.” L’Quitha Brock and other veterans rolled up their sleeves, ready to help stop the spread of the coronavirus by taking the first dose of the vaccination.

Getting the COVID vaccine has been challenging for many. The mass vaccination event at the Biloxi Veterans Affairs Medical Center helped prioritize those who have served the country.

After doing her research, Brock was ready to get vaccinated. “What I did was some research. I talked to some nurses about the vaccine and it assured me that everything was okay. So, I decided to go ahead and take the vaccine.”

Since the VA has started administering the vaccine, they have given out above 12,000 doses. Ronda Magee, a nurse, tells News 25 it is important for all people, but especially veterans to receive the vaccine. “It is very important that we be vaccinated against the COVID pandemic. We are losing a lot of people to this virus and so it’s just extremely important that we can get vaccinated.”

A 15-minute waiting period was enforced for each patient before leaving the facility to make sure of no symptoms or flair-ups.

Patient Care Services Associate Director Christopher Saslo said, “So the goal is to make sure that we have observations to all the veterans after they have had their vaccine. So, our nursing staff is administering the vaccine and they can have up to three patients in a room because of social distancing. That allows us to make sure we are monitoring for any acute symptoms that may be there.”