Collaboration brings COVID vaccine clinic to town

HAMDEN — A partnership between the town and Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center means Hamden will play host to a clinic able to provide several hundred doses of the COVID-19 vaccine each week, according to officials.

Starting next week, vaccinations will be available appointment on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, Mayor Curt Balzano Leng announced. The clinic will operate out of Hamden Public Schools’ central office at 60 Putnam Ave.

Bethany Kieley, Cornell Scott’s chief operations officer, said the center expects to vaccinate about 100 people per day at the Hamden site, which also will continue to hold walkin COVID testing on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The latter initiative, which launched Dec. 22, also was the result of partnership between the town and health center.

“We’ve felt like it’s a good collaboration with the town of Hamden but also a really nice supplement in close proximity to the services we offer in New Haven,” Kieley said.

With its Dixwell Avenue site in New Haven exceeding capacity, Hamden’s walk-in clinic allowed Cornell Scott to increase testing, according to Kieley, who said Friday that nearly 1,000 tests had been performed so far at the Hamden location.

A gymnasium within the school administration office allows for social distancing, she said, making the space a good fit to hold a clinic.

Leng praised the health center.

“Cornell Scott Health has been an amazing partner with the town throughout the pandemic. They’ve been able to help us have pop-up clinics at our Keefe Community Center and at Hamden High School . ... Then we were able to partner with them to establish a permanent testing clinic at 60 Putnam Avenue,” he said. “We’re extraordinarily excited that the partnership will bring our first vaccination clinic right to Hamden.”

Those wishing to get vaccinated at the Hamden clinic can call 203-503-3000 to make an appointment.

Hamden also will hold a clinic on March 2 at the Thornton Wilder Auditorium.

That clinic, whose patients will be able to get their second doses March 30, represents a collaboration between the Quinnipiack Valley Health District and town’s senior services and library staff, according to Leng.

He said town staff did outreach and made the appointments, all of which were filled as of this writing.

Hearst Connecticut Media file photo Hamden Public Schools’ central offices have doubled as a walk-in COVID-19 testing site since December. Starting in March, the site will also host a vaccination clinic.