Taking pictures is nothing new for the basketball health club at Selden Park. Nevertheless, on Saturday, as an alternative of going by means of a hoop, the pictures have been going into the arms of individuals searching for safety towards COVID-19.
The Coastal Well being District used the health club as a vaccination heart to distribute the Pfizer model of the COVID-19 vaccine. After making ready on Friday night time and early Saturday morning, employees spent practically eight hours delivering doses of the vaccine to greater than 600 folks.
“I feel it went rather well at the moment,” stated Paige Lightsey, immunization coordinator for the Coastal Well being District. “We acquired numerous constructive suggestions from individuals who advised us about how organized it was and how briskly it was.”
Individuals who acquired their first dose of vaccine on Saturday did so by appointment, which Lightsey says helps forestall folks from ready in lengthy traces.
Tables have been spaced on the health club’s blue ground to implement social distancing necessities, whereas chairs have been put aside, additionally spaced to the right size.
“We acquired right here lengthy earlier than everybody else,” Lightsey stated. “We had sufferers scheduled beginning at eight:30 am, however they began arriving round eight am.”
Saturday was the primary time the well being district used Selden Park as a distribution heart. Lightsey stated utilizing a bigger facility permits them to schedule extra folks on the identical time whereas guaranteeing there may be sufficient house to implement social distancing measures.
“It helps us as a result of we are able to do extra folks without delay,” Lightsey stated. “If we had greater venues obtainable, we may in all probability do that slightly extra typically. We have been fortunate sufficient to get this set up at the moment and hopefully we are able to do it once more. “
The Coastal Well being District has been distributing the vaccine since December 13. Glynn County, together with Chatham County, have been the primary public well being departments within the state to obtain the vaccine, in keeping with Lightsey.
“We now have been doing this somewhere else and in our well being division since then,” Lightsey stated.
The identical group of people that acquired vaccinated on Saturday should return to Selden Park in three weeks to obtain their second dose.
“All of these appointments are already scheduled, so we’ll be doing this once more in three weeks with the identical group of individuals,” Lightsey stated.
The well being division has stopped scheduling vaccine appointments in the interim, however advised The Information final week that it was near reopening the appointment for members of the general public in Part 1A + – folks 65 and older, their caregivers and first responders to emergencies.
As of three p.m. Sunday, 5,778 COVID-19 instances had been reported in Glynn County with 137 deaths. Camden County has recorded 22 deaths in 2,805 instances and McIntosh reported 10 deaths in 534 instances.