Berkeley mass vaccination site inoculates 323 people in ‘smooth launch’

After several weeks of calling doctors, waiting for endless waiting and researching the launch of the COVID-19 vaccine in California, hundreds of Berkeley seniors woke up on Thursday morning with unexpected news – the Berkeley mass vaccination site was open a day ahead of schedule, and local residents 75 and above can make an appointment on the same day.

The city’s first clinic of this size opened on February 5 in the parking lot north of Golden Gate Fields, located in Albany. It is the North County vaccination site of Alameda County, working in partnership with Curative, Albany, Berkeley and the race track, and will be permanently located in the Buchanan Road parking lot, overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco Bay.

The site is not going anywhere, but the city says consultations are scheduled only until February 8 due to limited vaccine supplies. On February 5, 323 people were able to receive their first dose of the Moderna vaccine, according to Shoshana Gould of Curative, partnership manager for the Bay Area.

Alta Bates Hospital was the first site to receive vaccines in Berkeley in late December. After a series of changes in the vaccination structure across the state, the city began last week to vaccinate residents aged 75 and over in its small vaccination clinics. At the same time, some health providers have started offering vaccines to people aged 65 and over. Both age groups are in Phase 1B, but Berkeley is prioritizing older residents. Another mass vaccination site planned to open at the Oakland Coliseum on February 16 has a goal of vaccinating 6,000 people a day.

The Berkeley mass vaccination site – which is Curative’s first in Northern California – will vastly increase the launch of the local vaccine for the elderly. It is good news for many during the launch of a statewide vaccine hampered by delays and injustices, but many residents who came to the site on Monday said the city’s notification process needs improvement to serve all residents. .

The nomination process needs to be improved, residents say

Dozens of residents who spoke to Berkeleyside while waiting for the vaccine on Thursday said they heard about the availability of consultations through friends, phone calls from their children, neighborhood groups and other channels. The city announced the clinic on Wednesday and posted a consultation link for Berkeley residents, which quickly filled up.

The clinic was due to start operating on Friday, but Matthai Chakko, a city spokesman, said several other consultations had been made available to test the capacity of the site on Thursday and 2,800 consultations have been offered so far. The city sent an email to everyone in the eligible group who signed up to receive notifications about extra appointments, according to Chakko.

This system did not work for Paul Shalmy, 80, who made a point of signing up to receive the notification, but does not have Wi-Fi at home. He had stayed up late on Wednesday night trying to make an appointment for the next few days, but he found all the reserved spots. In the morning, a friend called him to say that the consultations had been opened.

He ran to a place where he could access the internet and managed to block an appointment that afternoon.

Chakko said the city made some calls to schedule vaccines this week and is in the process of expanding its system to ensure that all eligible people are contacted about their dose. In public forums, all health and municipal officials have emphasized that vaccine supplies are limited and that the city continues to exceed the order limit.

Berkeley is still guiding residents to contact their primary care providers, but has expanded offerings to 800 more appointments this week. This is partly due to the fact that hospitals are also reporting limited supplies and refusing members who are eligible and await the vaccine. As of Friday, Berkeley Public Health administered 3,006 doses of its 4,800 dose quota.

“It’s really an anticlimax, I’ve been waiting, waiting, waiting,” said Steve Halverson, who has been a member of Kaiser for decades, but was unable to make an appointment for the vaccine through his doctor. He also got a call from a friend on Thursday morning about the new Curative website and went there with his wife, Win, who was not yet old enough to apply for the vaccine.

They waited in line for the drive-thru for almost an hour before it was his turn, but the process was smooth and simple when they stopped in front. Halverson rolled up his sleeve and received his photo in seconds, while Win photographed the important but late event.

City hall is testing capacity of the vaccination post and will try to expand access

Curative is taking care of the entire test site and 15 nurses were working on February 5, making sure to switch and take breaks while working directly in the sun, administering dose after dose to a variety of jubilant, concise and practical residents of fact.

The residents who were driving entered the front gate of the huge parking lot and underwent an initial screening to make sure they had an appointment, then went to the next area for closer identification and a home screening to make sure they who were eligible for the vaccine. (Vaccines are being administered only to residents of Alameda County.) After receiving the injection, they moved to a monitoring area for 15 to 30 minutes to make sure they would not cause any side effects.

Berkeley Fire captain Colin Arnold said that because the injection is intramuscular, rather than intravenous, there is less chance of irritation and serious reactions. People with high-risk factors are monitored longer, but Arnold said the vaccine has an incredibly low rate of anaphylaxis (or allergic reaction).

The fastest drive-thru vaccinations on Thursday took about five minutes, although some were slightly longer. Some residents who asked to receive the injection with another arm (with their backs to the car door) had to get out of the car to sit in a chair and others took longer to answer the nurses’ questions.

None of the residents who spoke to Berkeleyside said they were nervous about receiving the shot, and there was an even distribution of people who drove to the scene or other people drove them.

Transport activist Darrell Owens pointed out in social media that Golden Gate Fields is extremely difficult to access for those who do not have a car or cannot afford a bus.

The city has partnered with the Easy Does It transport service to offer tours to the elderly for a fee of $ 15. (Note: do not call or email Easy Does It for vaccine appointments.) More information on health checks and requirements for the transportation service are available on its website.

Berkeley is also expanding offerings for senior centers and other locations that may be more accessible to city residents, including the North Berkeley Senior Center and local partners like LifeLong Medical Care.

After long and difficult months of pandemic, the Berkeley mass vaccination site is a sign of progress

In addition to the frustration, impatience and difficulty waiting for the vaccine during the most difficult months of the pandemic, there was also a sense of cautious joy among residents who received the vaccines on Thursday.

There is an interval of 28 days between the first and the second injection of the Moderna vaccine, and patients receiving the first dose must maintain all COVID-19 safeguards during this period, as well as after receiving the second injection. There is no guarantee that a vaccinated person will not transmit the virus to another person.

But it was still a good opportunity for many to start fantasizing about the activities and trips they would once again be able to experience in the years to come. Many said they wanted to see their grandchildren again and some, like the Halversons, were beginning to plan a distant trip to Hungary.

Alicia Carter was accompanied by her friend and puppy Daisy Mae, and said she would start small and move to Albany Bulb after being vaccinated.

One of the most enthusiastic reactions came from Daniel Musicant, who is a DJ for KALX radio and found out how to arrange his date after reading Berkeleyside. He said he was “excited” about receiving his injection and happily raised his thumbs after receiving the vaccine.

He had signed up for the injection an hour before the appointment and, after watching the whole pandemic unfold from the early days in Wuhan, China, said he couldn’t believe it was finally his turn to get the vaccine.

“I didn’t expect any of that,” said Musicant, who went to Cal in the 1960s and has lived in Berkeley since 1973. “I am very excited, I have been following this from day one.”