The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences has given more than 13,000 covid-19 vaccinations to its employees and students, fast approaching shots for 90% of its workforce, its officials said Wednesday.
The workers' embrace of the vaccine will allow the academic medical center to turn its full attention to getting shots to the general public, UAMS Chancellor Cam Patterson said at a meeting of University of Arkansas System trustees. He called the numbers "extraordinary."
"Obviously we are at an inflection point as we transition to mass vaccination to get to 'herd immunity,'" Patterson said of the pandemic. The term is a public health idiom that means enough people have been vaccinated to slow a virus.
Patterson contrasted UAMS' success with reports of struggles at other Arkansas health systems to vaccinate at least 70% of their staffs. An internal communication campaign rolled out before vaccines were approved helped, as well as data that reviews what types of employees haven't been vaccinated, he said.
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Further vaccination clinics for employees are scheduled this week and next, a spokeswoman said. The health system is the state's largest public employer.
For the public, a recently launched vaccine center in Little Rock will accommodate 1,000-2,000 vaccinations a day once that much vaccine is available, Patterson said. Also in the works are two mobile vaccination vans, partnerships with historically Black colleges, and programs with Mena and Waldron school districts.
The latter will help vaccinate teachers, whom Patterson said are "daringly and admirably" putting themselves at risk to remain in classrooms.
At the meeting -- the first of a two-day convening in Little Rock -- officials also updated trustees on UAMS' finances. As of November, finances were running behind where they were last year but looked better than were expected during the crisis, chief financial officer Amanda George said.
Financial documents presented to the board show revenue at the end of November was up 8.9% compared with the same point last year, at about $536 million compared with $493 million. The gains largely are because of expanded retail and specialty pharmacy activity, George explained.
The system's operating margin, however, was down to about $38 million, compared with $52 million at the same point in the previous accounting period, a drop of 26.1%. Expenses for supplies, drugs, and salaries and benefits all increased, the documents show.
UAMS Medical Center chief executive officer Dr. Steppe Mette said he thought the health system's main campus had a good month in December and has thrived overall in the coronavirus outbreak. "I think we're stronger because of it," he said.
The situation helped UAMS increase intensive-care capacity, he said, and the system has worked through all of its non-time-sensitive procedures that were postponed in the spring. Beginning in October, about 10% of such procedures had to be postponed again to prepare for the winter wave of covid-19 patients.
As case numbers fall in the state, officials are considering backing off surge plans currently in place to help manage the number of people in the hospital.
"We haven't declared victory yet -- but we certainly are hopeful," Mette said.
Trustees offered little feedback on the updates but praised UAMS officials' participation in managing Arkansas' covid-19 patients, with a few board members pointing out that the situation highlighted the system's importance in the region.
While many have died from the new virus, UAMS "has done a remarkable job of saving lives that would be otherwise lost," trustee C.C. "Cliff" Gibson said. Trustee Sheffield Nelson added that he had a positive experience receiving the covid-19 vaccine at the campus.
Patterson also told the board Wednesday that a search for a new dean to lead the UAMS College of Medicine has narrowed to a "dream team" of four finalists. That hire will replace Dr. Christopher Westfall, who is retiring this summer, Patterson said.
The college is Arkansas' oldest and largest medical school.
