The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisory panel recommended Friday an additional vaccine dose for people with compromised immune systems.
Declining doses
“We were surprised and pleased that people are coming from other areas because they’ve heard that we are operating a very good and efficient site,” said Sangamon County Department of Public Health Director Gail O’Neill.
National Guard members check people in, collect consent forms, and direct them to dozens of numbered tables set up at the back of the building where medical professionals administer the shots. Most are through the process in less than 10 minutes, and then are directed to wait the 15-minute observation period on folding chairs spaced six feet apart. National Guard members staff another few tables at the exit, armed with tablets to schedule second-dose appointments.
Declining doses
“We were surprised and pleased that people are coming from other areas because they’ve heard that we are operating a very good and efficient site,” said Sangamon County Department of Public Health Director Gail O’Neill.
National Guard members check people in, collect consent forms, and direct them to dozens of numbered tables set up at the back of the building where medical professionals administer the shots. Most are through the process in less than 10 minutes, and then are directed to wait the 15-minute observation period on folding chairs spaced six feet apart. National Guard members staff another few tables at the exit, armed with tablets to schedule second-dose appointments.
Navigating the many different options for COVID-19 vaccine appointments was a “pain in the neck,” 13-year-old Eli Coustan discovered when he tried to find an appointment for his grandparents.
Finding open appointments can be difficult, with many slots filling up just as eligible residents attempt to sign up. Eli, an eighth grader at Haven Middle School, said the fact there was no centralized list of vaccine availability complicated his search.
“(Eli) said ‘I think I could do a website’ and we didn’t spend more than five minutes picking the name,” Charles Coustan, Eli’s father, said. “We registered the domain, paid seven dollars, and he had a working prototype within 24 hours.”
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