Freeman Employees Get Booster Shots

Joplin, Mo – Healthcare workers at Freeman Health System rolled up their sleeves Friday to get their booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Nurses, doctors and all staff working at Freeman facilities were eligible to receive the booster.

“I believe in the science,” said Keenan Cortez, Patient Experience Manager with Freeman. “I believe the scientists who created the vaccine are doing what’s good for the community. I want to do everything within my personal power to make sure I’m protected for myself and my community. I want to be part of the solution and not part of the problem.”

Between seven and eight hundred employees received the vaccination in the one-day clinic held October 15. Medical personnel were initially vaccinated beginning in December of 2020.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, studies show that after getting vaccinated against COVID-19, protection against the virus may decrease over time and may be less able to protect against the Delta variant. Data from a clinical trial show that a Pfizer-BioNTech booster shot increased the immune response in trial participants who finished their primary series 6 months earlier.

Photos of employees receiving the booster vaccination can be found in this wetransfer link: https://we.tl/t-97slRnfApY. Video can be found at this wetransfer link: https://we.tl/t-GruNagkeZn.

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About Freeman Health System

Locally owned, not-for-profit and nationally recognized, Freeman Health System includes Freeman Hospital West, Freeman Hospital East, Freeman Neosho Hospital and Ozark Center – the area’s largest provider of behavioral health services – as well as two urgent care clinics, dozens of physician clinics and a variety of specialty services. In 2020, Freeman earned dozens of individual awards for medical excellence and patient safety from CareChex®, a quality rating system that helps consumers evaluate healthcare providers. U.S. News & World Report named Freeman Health System the Best Hospital in Southwest Missouri for 2020-2021. With more than 320 physicians on staff representing more than 80 specialties, Freeman provides cancer care, heart care, neurology and neurosurgery, orthopaedics, children’s services and women’s services. Additionally, Freeman is the only Children’s Miracle Network Hospital in a 70-mile radius. For more information, visit freemanhealth.com.