Most doctor’s offices in Will and Grundy counties currently not offering COVID-19 vaccines

Now that at least 1,054 doctors in Illinois have signed up to give COVID-19 vaccines to their patients in their offices, how likely is it that some of those doctors are in Will and Grundy counties?

Not too likely – at least right now.

The Will County Community Health Center, which receives its COVID-19 vaccines directly from the federal government, does plan to offer COVID-19 vaccinations along with the school and sports physicals, Will County Community Health Center Executive Director Mary Maragos said in an email.

But receiving a COVID-19 vaccine from a doctor in private practice is not the norm right now.

Timothy Nelson, systems director, communications and media relations for AMITA Health, said Dr. Michael Kelleher, chair of the AMITA Health system’s COVID-19 vaccination committee, wasn’t aware of any physician practices at AMITA Health Saint Joseph Medical Center Joliet that are providing the COVID-19 vaccine.

Currently AMITA Health is focusing its efforts in Joliet and throughout the communities it serves on the hospital-based vaccine clinics, including the clinic at AMITA Health Saint Joseph Medical Center, Nelson said.

Appointments can be made at amitahealth.org/covid-19/vaccine. All COVID-19 protocols, including masking and social distancing, are being maintained at these clinics, Nelson said.

Janet Long, public relations manager at Morris Hospital & Healthcare Centers, said she wasn’t aware of any independent practitioners in the Grundy County area currently offering the COVID-19 vaccine.

Long also said Morris Hospital has its own physician’s group and that the conversation of whether or not to offer any of the COVID-19 vaccinations in the office setting is in the very early conversation stage.

The biggest challenge is simply logistics, Long said, which include managing the storage requirements for the vaccines. Logistical challenges are more easily addressed at the mass vaccination sites, Long said.

“They’ve certainly been a great way to get a lot of people vaccinated,” Long said. “Now it’s figuring out the ongoing maintenance that’s going to be needed.”

Long said Morris Hospital has doctor’s offices is approximately 20 locations. These offices vary in size and are spread out over several communities, she added. So the ability to manage the logistics of offering COVID-19 vaccines to their patients not one-size-fits-all.

“Each physician’s office may not be equipped to handle that,” Long said.

Dr. Christopher Udovich, medical director at Silver Cross Hospital in New Lenox, said “a couple” of doctors in Will County might be giving COVID-19 vaccines in their offices, but they are most likely the exception. Udovich himself is considering offering them in his private practice but mentioned the same logistical challenges that Long did.

Udovich said not only does each vaccine comes with different storage rules, the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines have different guidelines for the timing of that second shot: three weeks after the first dose for Pfizer and four weeks for Modern, Udovich said.

Ensuring sufficient patient interest in receiving the vaccine in an office setting so multi-dose vaccines aren’t wasted is another consideration, Udovich said.

Then why even consider administering the vaccine in doctor’s officers?

“I just want to make sure that those patients who want to get the vaccine, get the vaccine,” Udovich said. “If people have questions, I want to make sure we answer those questions.”

Udovich feels patients who might be hesitant about receiving a COVID-19 vaccine might feel more comfortable getting the shot at their doctor’s office.

“That would be the reason to do it,” Udovich said.