Silvergate residents receive Pfizer vaccinations

FALLBROOK – After much anticipation, Silvergate Fallbrook announced that the long-awaited first doses of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine were administered to residents, caregivers and staff on Jan. 13.

Licensed Vocational Nurses at Silvergate assisted incoming vaccine teams from

Omnicare, the parent company to well-known retail pharmacy chain CVS pharmacy, in vaccinating the community's residents, who were designated as a priority for the shots in Phase I of the Centers For Disease Control's national vaccine rollout guidelines.

"We are all ready to get back to normal and enjoy life beyond the pandemic, and these vaccines are the key to doing that," said Patricia Martinez, the executive director at Silvergate who has been closely working with state authorities to ensure that Silvergate was one of the first senior living communities in Fallbrook to be able to vaccinate its seniors. "There's finally a light at the end of this tunnel. We're already planning new activities for our residents to enjoy in the coming weeks once everyone is safely vaccinated a second time."

Silvergate has already received confirmation from CVS Pharmacy for its second-round vaccine clinic dates, which are set to take place in early February. Teams from CVS Pharmacy will return to Silvergate to help run follow-up vaccination clinics, as the Pfizer vaccine requires a second dose three weeks after the initial shot in order to reach the 95% effectiveness rate.

"Despite the delays in the distribution of the vaccine, all of our nurses and caregivers went above and beyond the call of duty to make this happen," said Mia Pacia, Director of Resident Care for the community. "They have been incredibly dedicated to the health and wellness of our resident population...all while working through this national health crisis we're all experiencing together. They are true front-line healthcare heroes!"

Silvergate Fallbrook has had enthusiastic cooperation from its resident population in the community's first-round vaccination efforts.

"I'm really excited to have the vaccine, because I was not sure I could have it because I'd had a stroke," said Sandy Starr, who will serve on the community's Council Board this year when she's not busy volunteering at Silvergate's country store. "I'm looking forward to being able to get out and hug my friends and start doing a lot of activities that we have not been able to do."

"We're so glad to get this started because I think this is where we're going to get this over with and start being able to hug our loved ones and visit our children," said Bettye McKim a long-time resident at Silvergate who also serves on the community's Council Board and takes advantage of many of Silvergate's activities, like Sit & Be Fit, the Walking Club and craft classes. "Silvergate's been fantastic through this. Now we just need to keep our heads down, go the rest of the way and we'll be good."

"Everybody's so excited about the vaccine," said Joe Hammer, a Silvergate resident who has spent a good bit of his time watching movies from his extensive video collection while waiting out the pandemic while serving as secretary for the Resident Council. "We've been waiting for this...hearing about it...and now finally it's here. I can't wait for three weeks to go by so that I can get my second shot. The people here at Silvergate have been great. They've kept us so well informed. They've kept us safe. They've kept us comfortable. They've gone out of their way to keep us out of harm's way. It's just been marvelous. Hopefully, we can get back to normal after this."

Silvergate Fallbrook is now scheduling virtual and private in-person tours of the community. For information, call Helen Gray at 760-728-8880. For general information about the independent living, assisted living and memory care accommodations at Silvergate, visit SilvergateRR.com/FB. Silvergate is located at 420 Elbrook Drive, Fallbrook.

Submitted by Silvergate Fallbrook.