March 30: Vaccine!

Tuesday was my scheduled day to get dose #1 of the COVID vaccine. I was just as impressed by the set up of the vaccine clinic as I was by the ease of the scheduling process (again, not the state system, this was entirely run by Lahey). I delight in smooth processes, good signage, and superb organization, and this clinic had all three. Lahey has turned the Gloucester Elks Lodge into a vaccine clinic and did an extraordinary job. (I've attended a funeral, a birthday party, and several other functions in this space, so it was cool to see it now being used for vaccines). 

As soon as you enter the parking lot, you are greeted with signage regarding the vaccine clinic, especially instructing you to stay in your car until the time of your appointment. Mine was at 12pm, and I arrived exactly at 12pm, so I parked and walked directly to the entrance. I checked in with a guy outside who had a clipboard to confirm my name and time and then I went inside. 

In the lobby, I used the provided hand sanitizer and was asked several questions by another greeter standing at a round table about symptoms and exposure to COVID in the past week (I have had none). Then I was given a blue paper mask to put over my cloth mask and directed to a third greeter, at a desk behind plexiglass. She found my name in the computer, gave me some paperwork and a sticker that said PFIZER that I was told to wear, and directed to stand in line for my shot (with floor decals keeping people in line 6ft apart).

There were several cubicle structures set up into little nursing stations, maybe 6-8 of them and I was eventually directed to see the nurse in cubicle 4. The nurse introduced herself, asked me a bunch of questions (allergies [none], any reactions to medicines [I have vasovagal response], which arm I'd like the shot in [left]), and shared with me a lot of information including what to expect regarding symptoms [pain in arm, tiredness, headache, etc]. She also gave me a white vaccination card, the size of a business card, with my vaccine information on it, that I was instructed not only to keep but also to take a picture of in case it got lost]. Then I got the shot, super easy, just a little prick. 

I was then instructed to go to the checkout desk, down in the main hall of the lodge. I gave my name, scheduled the appointment for my second dose, and was told to wait in this area for 15-30 minutes to make sure I had no reactions to the vaccine. There were chairs set up 6 feet apart all around the area. I took a seat. By then it was 12:15pm, so I decided to stay until at least 12:30pm. I started to read some of the paperwork they gave me, but reading about the side effects and the ways the vaccine works in the body started making me nauseous, so I had to stop. Instead I did a crossword puzzle on my phone. After 15 minutes, I felt fine, and left the lodge, following the arrows on the floor directing me out.

All in all, it was a delightful experience, not only because I got my first dose of a vaccine (yay!), but also because the clinic was so well run. I've always gotten my vaccines at the doctor's office, almost always just during regularly scheduled exams, so being at a vaccine clinic was quite the experience. It amazes me that a vaccine was developed so quickly, and has been disseminated to the public (at least in the case of this clinic in Gloucester) in such an orderly way. What a crazy historical moment we are living through!

With delight (and a vaccine),

♥Jamie