Cleveland, OH - Vaccinations began Wednesday at Cleveland State University's Wolstein Center for the 8 week mass vaccination clinic. I was down there for opening day, where the goal was to vaccinate 1,500 people. There was a steady flow of people coming to for their appointments and everything seemed to be running smoothly. I was able to talk to Angie, who was volunteering at the Main Entrance, and I asked her what it was like when the gates opened for the first time; "It was good. It's still the beginning and we are still fine tuning some things, but people have said that it's well organized and it's been a good experience....so that's good to hear."
I was very interested to learn about the process and how long an appointment would take. I caught up with Karen who told me, " It was very quick. People escorted us to a chair on the main floor of the arena. Then someone came up, gave us the shot and said we could wait for 15 minutes if we wanted or we could leave. It was very easy."
As I stood and watched for awhile, this appeared to be the theme from most people's experience. I was able to talk to another couple as they left the Wolstein Center and Doug told me he could be more impressed. He said, "There were great people who directed us towards parking and once inside there was a mass of humanity that helped us. Everyone was very nice, helpful, supportive and engaging. It was probably the most impressive line-up that I've seen, in terms of mass vaccination."
All the people I talked to told me that they were able to book their second dose right there after their first shot. Doug told me, "There's a person who books your next appointment. They give you the option of a dates and times 3 weeks out. Then they give you a reminder card with all the information on it. It couldn't have gone any smoother."
I, myself, was so impressed with everything that I heard that I booked my first dose appointment today!
From everything that I can tell, everyone involved with this operation got it right!
The mass vaccination clinic will run from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., 7 days a week, for the next 8 weeks.
Photo courtesy Steve Bailey, WTAM news
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