MILAM COUNTY, TX — In an effort to vaccinate as many people as possible, Milam County is bringing COVID-19 vaccines to the homebound. Milam County health department nurses recently visited a senior living apartment complex in Rockdale, where they vaccinated approximately 30 homebound residents with the first round of the Moderna vaccine.
"The very first home-bound patient that I [vaccinated], she actually started crying and blessed me," said Amanda Huner, nurse with the Milam County health department. "And she told me that she could never repay me.”
Health care professionals like Huner will continue to bring vaccines to the homebound next week, visiting individual houses. At least 40 more Milam Country residents have requested this service for next week. Nurses will provide coolers full of the vaccines, along with other supplies needed to administer shots.
"We take all of our paperwork, Sharps containers, and then we have an E-kit," Huner explained. "So we carry epi [pens] and Benadryl in case anybody has an adverse reaction.”
Vaccinating the homebound is part of a collective push by county leaders like Judge Steve Young to provide COVID-19 immunizations to as many people as possible.
"About 30% of the county has received the first shot, and about 15% are fully vaccinated with the second shot," Judge Young said. "The shots we’ve given amount to 85% of all shots given in the county.”
Milam County is relatively small and rural, and its health department wouldn’t have enough manpower without volunteers like Heather McCann. McCann is one of six Texas A&M pharmacy doctoral students who are assisting the health department in administering immunizations.
"It's a good feeling knowing that this is what I’m going into in a couple of months, and knowing I am making a difference," McCann said. "And that’s why I started school in the first place.”
In the near future, Judge Young hopes to also provide Pfizer vaccines to all high school students in Milam County that are at least 16 years old.
Area residents interested in arranging a COVID-19 immunization are advised to call 254-697-7000.