Photo submitted by Mikayla Bruggeman, Sleepy Eye Medical Center Sleepy Eye Medical Center staff administer COVID-19 first-dose vaccinations to 378 patients at the Sleepy Eye Event Center Saturday, March 27.

SLEEPY EYE — Patients came from Brown County and places as far as several hours away to the Sleepy Eye Medical Center (SEMC) COVID-19 vaccination clinic at the Sleepy Eye Event Center March 27.

Mikaya Bruggeman, SEMC Community Relations Coordinator said 378 patients, mostly from Brown County, were scheduled to receive their first COVID-19 vaccine shot at the spacious event center Saturday.

Patients included Paul Becker of Winona, originally of Fairfax, who said he tried to schedule a COVID vaccination shot in Winona but was not able to do so, so he drove 179 miles to Sleepy Eye in about three hours.

“I travel for work and I’m an essential worker, so I wanted to get a shot,” Becker said. “My parents in Fairfax said they got their vaccination shots in Sleepy Eye and suggested I do so, so I did.”

As they left the Event Center after receiving their shots and waiting the allotted time, a number of patients said they were glad the shot clinic had available openings and we happy with how things went.

“I was very impressed with how things went,” said Linda Spencer of Fairfax after he left the building.

Other patients that received vaccinations hailed from Sleepy Eye, Springfield, and New Ulm.

A COVID-19 vaccine list form is available at the top of the SEMC website. Visit https://semedicalcenter/org/covid19resourcehub/

The medical center is currently collecting information for Phase 1B, Tier 3 patients. This phase includes those with specific underlying health conditions, food processing plant workers, and people with rare conditions or disabilities that put them at a higher risk of severe illness.

Other eligible Minnesota residents are outlines at https://mn.gov/covid19/vaccine/whos-getting-vaccinated/vaccinated.jsp.

Information collected on the online form is used to contact individuals to receive their COVID-19 vaccine when doses become available.

“Please know that the demand for COVID-19 vaccine continued to exceed supply, therefore, once this form is completed, please refrain from contacting us. We will contact you to schedule your appointment,” read the website.

The medical center website includes a COVID-19 vaccine discussion in which Drs. Karlyn and Adam Armbruster of Sleepy Eye answer common questions about the COVID-19 vaccine on Facebook Live.

Fritz Busch can be emailed at fbusch@nujournal.com.