Vaccines that are to turn the table in the fight against COVID19 should be available soon for healthcare workers on the front lines of the war on the pandemic that has tightened its grip in the area in the last month.

Middle and high schools have been forced into virtual learning and Pierce County Public Health was forced to issue an order limiting the size of public gatherings. In Prescott, the City Council passed an emergency resolution to cut weekend bar hours because of problems created by crowds coming across the border from Minnesota (see related article).

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services said that over the next several months, it will work to make sure everyone in the state has access to the vaccine. Because there will be limited supply at first, the DHS plans front line health care workers to be the first group to receive the vaccine. As supply increases, other essential workers, people ages 65 and older and people at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19 will likely be in the first groups to receive a vaccine, according to the DHS. As more supply becomes available, groups of people at higher risk for contracting COVID-19 and the

Photo by Paul Seeling. general public will be recommended to get the vaccine.

Pierce County Public Health Director AZ Snyder said her staff will be ready to help – as they have been all year – when the vaccine is available.

“Pierce County Public Health has planned for a vaccine distribution event like this for years. Our public health nursing team is ready with supplies and has selected a few sites for vaccination clinics. The decisions about amounts of vaccine and timing are up to the state and federal governments. I am hopeful that we will start vaccinating healthcare workers and long-term care facility residents in late December or early January,” Snyder said.

The Journal submitted a series of questions to Snyder, looking back on this past year. Here are her responses.

What has impressed you overall about Pierce County and its residents in 2020?

The_vast majority of Pierce County residents want to do the right thing for themselves, their families, and the community. People doing the right thing doesn't get a lot of attention. There is a small minority who get a lot of attention_for acting out,_but most in Pierce County recognize that we all have a responsibility to each other._

When you think back at the start of the year, what are your thoughts on what has happened? Did you ever conceive of what has evolved here and in America as a whole?

I remember waking up on New Year’s Day, 2020, to a WHO alert on my phone about an outbreak in Wuhan, China, caused by a pathogen_not yet identified. I remember thinking, I hope this isn't the one we've been preparing for – a highly infectious, deadly respiratory_virus_for which the human population has no previous immunity. Unfortunately, it was just that._

What does it say about your staff that they have had to stay on top of this ever-changing situation?

Not once in the last 12 months have Public Health staff complained about the long hours, working on the weekends or forgoing time off. Our staff care about Pierce County residents. They have gone above and beyond at every opportunity: delivering food to quarantined families,_connecting families to rent assistance resources, and providing advice to scared and sick residents. It hurts that a few people in the community think of us as faceless, uncaring bureaucrats. I challenge those people to spend an hour with a public health nurse. It would change their mind._

What is your advice for families during the holiday season?

I know it's painful but stay apart. I miss my family, too. But just because we need to be apart doesn't mean we can't spend time together. My family is planning on opening gifts together via Zoom on Christmas morning.

Do you have any information on vaccines reaching the area and any schedule for how it will be handled locally?

Pierce County Public Health has planned for a vaccine distribution event like this for years. Our public health nursing team is ready with supplies and has selected a few sites for vaccination clinics. The decisions about amounts of vaccine and timing are up to the state and federal governments. I am hopeful that we will start vaccinating healthcare workers and long-term care facility residents in late December or early January. _

Could you comment on the support you’ve received from local government, especially the county board and officials this year?

Many local health officers in Wisconsin left their positions this year due to workload or lack of support from local elected officials. I feel incredibly lucky to say that Pierce County supervisors, along with elected officials in our municipalities, have been supportive of public health. That doesn't mean they always agree with me. They ask great questions and challenge me to think about problems from a variety of perspectives. At the end of the day, Pierce County officials are rowing in the same direction – towards a brighter, healthier 2021._

When the county board took action this summer to change the ordinance to bring powers in line with state statute, what has that allowed your department to do and has it been utilized at all?

We recently issued a temporary advisory limiting indoor public gatherings to 25% capacity, the ordinance passed this summer gives us a way to enforce it, if needed. So far, we've not needed to fine any businesses.