By Wayne E. Rivet

Staff Writer

As Americans experienced both relief and optimism as the Pfizer vaccine was shipped to hospitals across the country this week, Peter Wright joined other health officials warning the public to stay vigilant in the fight against Covid-19.

“I realize it is a bit of doom and gloom, but I am not sure any longer how to pour the proverbial pitcher of cold water to wake and sober everyone up. We are not insulated any longer living in rural life. We are not insulated from Covid in any way. Covid is everywhere, and nobody is safe,” the Bridgton Hospital president told Harrison’s Selectboard via Zoom last Thursday night. “We have to maintain our vigilance on masking, social distancing, washing hands and limiting our social circles. I know of no other advice to give because everything else that we’ve tried to do has not worked.”

The Lake Region has seen Covid-19 numbers surge over the past few weeks, resulting in closure of town offices, businesses and schools (see related stories).

According to the Maine CDC website, the “snapshot” of cases by zip code as of Dec. 6 were as follows:

Bridgton — 16

Casco — 40

Harrison — 22

Naples — 70

Raymond — 39

Fryeburg — 15

The towns of Sebago, Brownfield, Lovell and Waterford had a case count ranging from 6 to 19, while Denmark’s number was 1 to 5.

Bridgton officials decided this week that the town’s Transfer Station Storewill be closed effective Dec. 19, due to Covid-19 restrictions, until further notice.

Unfortunately, the surge is unfolding as health officials expected.

“This is particularly concerning because leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday we could see this coming. We have issued warnings, and pleaded with the public, and pleaded with the business communities around our region, really to not too much avail,” Wright told Harrison officials. “As predicted, we are now at a peak of what would have been the Thanksgiving-based exposures. We are roughly 10 to 14 days post last day depending upon if it was a Thanksgiving Day exposure or an exposure that Sunday. The projections I’ve seen show that the peak won’t reach us until sometime Dec. 23 and the middle of the week, the first of the year. It is going to continue to climb and we’re continuing to go into a season that encourages travel, that encourages visits, that encourages deviations from the three basic steps that we’ve asked everybody to do, which is mask up, wash your hands and socially distance.” 

Wright credited the Bridgton Hospital team for remaining “incredibly diligent” during the pandemic. 

“They are doing an amazing job. I don’t hesitate to call the front-line workers heroes because it’s truly what they are. This has gone on longer than any mass casualty, any incident in our lifetime. We are learning how to deal with it,” he said. “It is indeed exhausting. We are continuing to carry on and do good work, and still be able to take care of the community as we always have. The things that keep me up at night are the endurance of my team, how I can keep them energized.”

Wright noted that he spent his first holiday everwithout his children. 

“It was perhaps one of the most difficult things I’ve had to do,” he said.

Help is on the way. 

“Do I believe the vaccine will be effective? I have every reason to believe that it will. All of the clinical studies, which have met muster, show that this vaccine is extremely promising. Will we be able to vaccine everyone in a short period of time, we will not,” Wright said. “It is projected it will reach 70% immunization best case scenario in May. It will be a Herculean effort. The vaccine should help us where we need to go, but it is going to be a long winter. And, it’s going to be a long spring.”

One way to fight back against the surge is to continue to adhere to “best practices,” and Wright called upon town leaders to encourage the community to keep their guards up.

“We need to insure our local businesses are living to both the spirit and the letter of the governor’s executive order of masking. I travel through many, many communities and in every community, I can see through a window and see four people sitting at a table, clearly not family, having coffee and chatting. It resonates with me that it just isn’t sinking through,” Wright said. “Our recommendations don’t always jive with everyone’s personal and political beliefs. The great advice given to me is there are two ways to think about this — You believe in what I am telling you or you don’t. If you believe what I am telling you and I am wrong, the worst-case scenario is that I am overly cautious and perhaps slightly inconvenienced. If you believe in what I am telling you and we don’t follow those rules, people will get sick and some people will die. So, we, as leaders, must be sure that the rules are followed regardless of personal beliefs, regardless of the uncomfortableness that it will no doubt create by asking business owners who aren’t following to follow; by asking those people who aren’t following to follow.”

Wright noted that he has had similar conversations with his own staff. 

“It’s very serious. It is getting worst. I am indeed worried, but Bridgton Hospital is armed and prepared, and continues to take care of its community,” he added.

Questions and Answers

After his initial comments, Wright held a question-answer segment. Some of the areas covered included:

• When a vaccine is available, when will the public be able to get them?

Wright — “It depends upon which vaccine. Pfizer (vaccine) will be kept in Lewiston in collaboration with Bates College. We haven’t figured out yet how we will deploy them; Moderna doesn’t require the deep freeze which Bridgton Hospital can handle.”

The hospital’s flu vaccine team is turning into the Covid vaccine team.

“We ran a couple of flu clinics as a test. We are hoping you will be able to come to the hospital and get the vaccine; it may be you can drive up, get a shot, park for five minutes to be sure you’re okay and go on your way; or it may be you have to come inside depending upon a variety of variables regarding your health, pre-existing conditions,” he added.

• Has there been Covid cases at Bridgton Hospital?

Wright — “Yes, we’ve had Covid cases from the beginning, some we’ve kept and some we’ve transferred to Central Maine (Medical Center), some to Central Maine then back to Bridgton Hospital. Currently, we have two patients and evaluating a third to see if we have the capacity to care for that person.”

• How are Covid supplies holding up?

Wright — “We have plenty of PPE, more masks and other supplies that we can shake a stick at. We could use more gloves. They are the healthcare equivalent right now to toilet paper. We’re trading with some of our partners on some of that stuff.  Nothing that I am worried about today or in the foreseeable future.”

• How will the waterfall (vaccinations) roll?

Wright — “The federal government has set certain priorities. Front-line healthcare workers and long-term residents will be prioritized. They’re the most vulnerable in Maine and the country. Then, it will be the general public based on severity of risk.” 

As for his thoughts on the vaccine, Wright said, “There is nothing that we’ve seen thus far that would show that it is anything but 100% safe. I am usually a skeptic on those type of things. I’m young, healthy, I really don’t need it. I can tell you, I have great faith in the vaccine.” 

When asked where first-responders fall in the vaccination line, Wright said police, firefighters and Emergency Medical personnel are considered front-line healthcare workers. So, police, fire and EMS will be vaccinated after hospital staff.

• What is Bridgton Hospital’s refrigeration capability?

Wright — “CMMC, in collaboration with Bates College, have the negative 90 freezers required by Pfizer; Bridgton Hospital and Rumford are slated to get the vaccine from Moderna, which doesn’t require the extreme cold temperature. It is stored like other vaccines and BH has refrigeration for that.”

Wright, however, noted that BH could administer both vaccines.

“What happens is, depending on the time and the vaccine we need to administer, will take the vaccine from the freezer in Lewiston, transport directly to the vaccine site. Five to six hours once they come out of the freezer more than enough time to get them from the Medical Center to our community in time to administer,” he said.

Wright said clinical trials have come under great scrutiny, and “everyone in the world is watching” in regards to vaccinations occurring in the United Kingdom and the United States.

“We have no reason to believe this is anything but 100% safe, 90% effective,” Wright said. “On a good year, the flu vaccine is about 55% effective.” 

• Will Bridgton Hospital have enough staff to administer the vaccine while also caring the other patients in house?

Wright — “Today, yes. We will have enough to administer the vaccine. It is going to become priority Number 1 so even if I lose some staff to illness due to exposure, then I can reduce or limit or stop other non-critical services to be able to facilitate vaccinations. We will work in collaboration with the state’s vaccination team, it’s not a gaggle of nurses, but more like three or four people for Cumberland County. If for some reason a large volume of healthcare workers become ill, we will be able to deploy other state resources to help with this effort.”

Wright added that each community is working on its own response plan to meet its needs. “I am comfortable with our plan and our readiness,” he said.

• How will Bridgton Hospital let the public know when they are ready to vaccinate?

Wright — “Everybody will know. I imagine there will be great fanfare when vaccines arrive for healthcare workers; we will post it on our social media; our staff will be briefed every day on what we have and what we’re doing; and you can all the administrative offices.”

Wright invited Harrison town officials to be included in Bridgton Hospital’s monthly call session, which information is updated. With the roll out of the Covid-19 vaccine, Wright anticipated that the number of call sessions will likely increase.