Get it done
Drive-thru COVID-19 vaccine clinics in Yell County work seamlessly
When Jeff Gilkey, director of the Yell County Office of Emergency Management, pitched the idea of providing COVID-19 vaccinations outdoors, a few people “looked at me like I was crazy,” he said.
The drive-thru shot clinics held in Danville and Dardanelle served more than 6,000 residents — up to 100 people an hour.
It’s gone almost flawlessly, Gilkey said. “Really, the pros outweighed the cons, and for months now. Everybody has just worked together; it’s special,” he said.
When officials met to discuss the best way to provide vaccines, Gilkey said, inside options were being considered.
All he could think of, he said, was the cleaning that would have to be done between participants and the challenges of social distancing indoors.
Gilkey brainstormed with Yell County Judge Mark Thone and Dardanelle Mayor Jimmy Witt, and they came up with the idea of a drive-thru system, similar to some flu-shot clinics.
Thone said he and Witt met with pharmacists at Rose Drug and Berry Drug, both in Dardanelle, which received the vaccines, “and we convinced them instead of having these people trickle into their pharmacy every day, all day, every week, to do it like the flu shots.”
Gilkey said Witt put together a meeting of about 20 county and city officials from Danville and Dardanelle to discuss the plan, and they decided to try it. Gilkey spearheaded the effort.
“We did kind of a dry run with our first responders,” Gilkey said, in which 100 people were vaccinated in the parking lot of Dardanelle Regional Medical Center.
“It went so smooth; everybody bought into it,” Gilkey said. “There was a lot of faith put into me, Mayor Witt and Judge Thone.”
Thone, whose wife, Terry, died in August of COVID-19, said the vaccinations are vital to protect the community.
“I don’t think a lot of counties are doing what we’re doing; we’re trying to be proactive. We all have a vested interest … because we’ve either lost family members or friends,” he said.
The clinics were held twice a week, once in the Danville City Park and once in Merritt Park in Dardanelle, beginning in late January. The last clinic was April 28.
Residents could call one of three numbers at the Yell County COVID Call Center, which was set up in the Dardanelle City Hall specifically for the drivethru clinics and manned with “some of the best volunteers,” Gilkey said.
Residents made appointments for time slots and were told the brand of vaccine being administered. Gilkey said that about 90 percent of the shots were with the Moderna vaccine, although some Pfizer vaccines were given, and about 80 people received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
Gilkey said the county rented “party tents” and equipped them with space heaters, lights and a table for the nurses, most of whom were from John Ed Chambers Memorial Hospital in Danville. Volunteers provided paperwork for the customers to fill out when they drove in.
“The [Arkansas] Department of Health was concerned that we could monitor people faithfully in the cars, concerned that if somebody had a reaction we wouldn’t know it,” Gilkey said.
To ensure everyone’s safety, Gilkey said, after each person received a vaccine, a time stamp was placed on the individual’s vehicle window.
“We said, ‘If you start having any issues, please honk the horns, open the doors.’”
He said three or four volunteers would walk up and down in the “waiting area,” making small talk and checking on people. In addition to the nurses, Pinnacle EMS was on-site at every clinic, Gilkey said.
He said two people had what he called “panic attacks,” but no one had a severe reaction to the shot while waiting.
“Everything was good,” he said.
Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine was put on hold because a handful of people had experienced blood clots, out of 7 million shots given, but Gilkey said he hasn’t heard of anyone in Yell County having a negative reaction to that vaccine, either.
“We follow up with some of our people because it’s a small town. Everybody felt OK; there are no reports of anybody feeling bad,” he said.
Marsha DuVall, owner of Rose Drug in Dardanelle, said the drive-thru clinics were successful and took the pressure off pharmacists.
“Especially when there were huge numbers on the list, it was the most efficient way to run that many numbers,” she said. “We could do 30 a day in-store and be comfortable. It would have taken every day that week to do [as many as one drivethrough clinic], especially when you add in trying to do seconds.”
The pharmacies provided a small number of staff to help with immunizations and paperwork, she said.
DuVall said the drive-thru clinics ensured “less exposure” to COVID-19 with the ability to “space everybody out and maintain social distancing. Without the county’s help, there’s no way we could have done what we did.”
She also said having one call center in the county was key because it helped the process run smoothly by keeping up with the lists of people signing up for the vaccines and calling them back to schedule second shots.
Danville School District Superintendent Gregg Grant was one of those who received his two vaccines at drive-thru clinics.
Grant said Gilkey approached him with the idea of vaccinating the teachers at one time, and a drive-thru clinic was held on the Danville campus after school. Grant invited Two Rivers and Western Yell County teachers and staff, too.
“It was just a great opportunity for their staffs and our staff to get shots, and it was just real convenient,” Grant said. The individuals received their second shots at Danville City Park.
Grant said he was “relieved” to be able to get the vaccinations, and the drive-thru process seems to have worked seamlessly.
Thone said Yell County has been an example for other entities.
“We’ve had other counties and cities, and even Arkansas Tech — their public safety director has come over and watched our process,” Thone said. “This sure is a lot more efficient than what a lot of other people are doing.”
Gilkey gave credit to pharmacists, volunteers from city departments (including the police and water departments), Chambers Memorial Hospital, Dardanelle Regional Medical Center, off-duty nurses and others who pitched in where needed.
“I’m really glad our community supported us,” Gilkey said. “It took some patience on their part because the call center was overwhelmed for a while. Everybody was just thankful and kind and courteous. Nobody complained about the wait time.
“I’m proud of our community. The thing to us was the teamwork; there’s where it came together. In Yell County, I think it’s one of the best things we’ve done in a long time.”