Day at the beach? Get vaccinated
Pop-up COVID clinic sets up shop at Cove Island Park
STAMFORD — Gone are the days of scrambling for a COVID vaccine in Stamford. Appointments at Stamford Health are readily available for large swaths of the week. The state announced that mobile vaccine clinics operated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency will post up in town. People have gotten shots at the
Government Center and in their apartment buildings. And over the weekend, residents even got the jab on the beach — no appointment necessary.
Community Health Center joined the growing roster of care providers ditching registration to bring doses right to people’s doors, or in this case, right to their shore on Saturday and Sunday by holding a vaccine clinic at Cove Island Park.
The clinic is part of a new citywide strategy to remove barriers to
vaccination by putting sites “where people tend to go,” in the words of Mayor David Martin. The city promoted a flurry of upcoming clinics at community hotspots. In most cases, people could either pre-register or show up the day of.
But CHC opted to reject appointments altogether for its Cove Island endeavor. It’s part of the healthcare provider’s new ABC vaccine initiative, which stands for amusement parks, beaches, and Chambers of Commerce.
For Stamford, Cove Island Park seemed like a logical place to start.
“It’s beloved in the city of Stamford, and a lot of people go there. While people go there to relax, they also have a little bit of extra time to get the vaccine,” CHC Regional Vice President Amy Taylor said.
And while the perfect, sunny day that CHC and the city were hoping for didn’t quite materialize for the clinics, members of the community still showed up. Through their joint venture, 50 people received the shot on Saturday, and another 80 the following day.
Nationwide, enthusiasm has plummeted for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. The New York Times reported that the number of daily doses given for the one-dose shot flatlined during the federally-enacted vaccine pause. Even after the government reauthorized the vaccine on April 23, the number of J&J doses distributed stayed down.
Staff at Cove Island Park clinic witnessed that hesitancy firsthand,
but on a much smaller scale. While 130 people received the one-dose shot over the weekend, four opted against it to pursue either the Moderna of Pfizer vaccines, which CHC provides at its two other Stamford locations. Those two sites also eliminated the appointment requirement.
Kimberly Metcalf, associate vice president of pharmacy at UConn Health, said these pop-up clinics represent a new phase of vaccine outreach.
“Supply and demand have switched. We’ve noticed that the demand has started to decline, and supply? We’re still receiving the same quantities that we did before,” Metcalf said. The drop-off has forced vaccine providers like UConn Health and CHC to get creative in
their approaches.
“With this flip, you’re going to see that a lot of providers are just walkup,” she said. Her organization has made the switch too, because removing barriers like online portals wears away at the notion that getting a vaccine is cumbersome. Plus, holding vaccination events in less clinical settings could help alleviate the stakes associated with getting the shot, she said.
Vaccinating more and more people has become the top priority for state officials. Almost 30 municipalities and local health departments in Connecticut received $13 million in federal grants money to partner with community organizations and grow vaccine access.
With more than 50 percent of residents vaccinated, the biggest hurdle remains ahead: vaccinating the more hesitant half.
Metcalf doesn’t know if pop-up clinics will be the magic bullet, but she said it falls to healthcare providers to try everything. She hopes more accessible clinics will also create space for even more conversation about the vaccines. She hopes those who are skeptical might even get the chance to talk to a healthcare provider on the beach and air their concerns.
“We as clinicians, we’re passionate about helping people. We are happy to make ourselves available to have those difficult conversations with folks who are very much against the vaccine,” she said. “Let’s have a good, healthy conversation around it and be respectful of each others’ views. Let’s see what we can do.”