Minute Maid Park buzzed with energy on Saturday, with residents waiting in lines and pushing their elderly loved ones into wheelchairs into the stadium. But the main attraction was not baseball – it was COVID-19 vaccines.
“I hope it does not hurt too much,” Stan Shniderson, 83, told Mayor Sylvester Turner moments before he was vaccinated.
“Oh, it does not hurt at all!” assures Turner, who received his vaccine last week.
The city has partnered with the Astros organization to turn the ballpark into a site to provide the Moderna vaccine to up to 3,600 health workers, residents 65 years and older, and patients with underlying medical conditions. The distribution of vaccines was moved from the Bayou City Event Center, which was needed for another event, which gave the city a taste of how the stadium will function as a mega-website when it officially opens in the coming week.
Divided into three sections, the stadium’s lower level was reserved for the elderly and people with mobility challenges. Volunteers first led participants to a section to complete additional paperwork for the vaccine, then to a waiting area and the official vaccination stations, and finally to an observation area, where health workers waited at least 15 minutes for adverse or allergic reactions.
According to many who were vaccinated, the process was simple, almost painless and a hopeful step towards normalcy.
“It’s like a flu shot,” says Rod Miller, noting that he has a medical condition and describes himself as middle-aged. “It’s something you have to do. It is not just a civic duty. This is to protect family and friends. This is the responsible thing to do. ”
Recent Gwendolyn McAfee, 22, a graduate of A & M University of Prairie View, said with her contempt for needles and the uncertainty about the effects of the vaccine, she was uneasy. But while sitting intact in the observation area, McAfee said she was happy she got through it.
‘A lot of people my age don’t like the vaccine … but I think I can be an example to my peers, especially in the age of social media. It’s the best way to stay safe, ”McAfee said.
Shniderson, whose wife died in July, said it was difficult to stay home alone during the pandemic. The vaccine can provide a semblance of safety as it tries to get together safely with a few friends and to do messages while COVID lingers.
Yet there are ‘many’ ifs’ and ‘buts’ about this. I do not know if it will work or not, ”said Schniderson, who lived through the polio epidemic in Texas in the early 1950s, but he is hopeful.
Unexpected delivery
Turner, who toured the site, greeted residents with fists and elbows and encouraged volunteers and emergency workers, said Minute Maid Park is the largest vaccination site the city has offered to date – 350 people per hour vaccinated and the total number of people triples. vaccinated last Saturday at the Bayou City Event Center.
U.S. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, who attended an afternoon press conference at the ballpark, said it is also the first model of a mega-site in the country, which could serve as an example for other major cities that also want to establish similar sites.
However, the outcome was more than what Turner and health officials originally expected.
The city had about 1,000 doses of the vaccine from Thursday and decided to scale down vaccinations for the weekend when the delivery was not received, but by Friday morning, the city had unexpectedly received 2,600 vaccinations, Turner said. The city and Houston health department quickly switched gears and planned appointments with pre-registered people to ensure the vaccine was distributed and not put to waste. They also opened registration and received an additional 1,000 applicants within 20 minutes, Turner said.
Marcel Braithwaite, the Astros’ senior vice president for business operations, said the stadium had already started preparing earlier this week and officials were trusting the infrastructure.
“It was more about the logistical flow” and to ensure there was enough physical space in the building to allow for social distance in waiting areas and vaccination pools, Braithwaite said.
Due to the early delivery, Lesley Fox, 56, of Harris County, said her vaccination appointment – originally scheduled for the end of January – had been rescheduled for Saturday morning. She was impressed with the organization of the process and the pleasantness of many of the volunteers and essential workers in the stadium that day, Fox said, wearing a Buc-ee mask.
“I thought it was going to be chaos,” Fox said. He is a volunteer for the Houston Livestock and Rodeo Show and works for United Airlines. She is eager to return to a normal life, she said.
“I want to see my mother. “I stand in front of people, and I do not want to stop it,” Fox said. “I want to be normal again, and if it’s going to help, so be it.”
Stay alert
Despite Saturday’s success at the site, Turner said he and city health officials are not yet satisfied with the distribution of vaccines.
“We hope things increase rapidly,” he said, adding that “certainty about when vaccines will arrive and how much ‘can be expected will better meet the city’s demand.
Houston Department of Health Director Stephen L. Williams added that the city plans to operate at least two mega-vaccination sites – one on the north side and one on the south side of Houston. The city will also create a mobile website that distributes vaccinations to urban neighborhoods and works with health centers and pharmacies to ensure coverage in the city. Williams added that how many people are vaccinated will depend on how many vaccines are delivered and that a portion of the next consignment of vaccines will be preferred to nursing homes.
“It will become more reliable over time and as the vaccine becomes available,” Williams said.
Although the distribution of vaccines is increasing, Williams and Turner have advised residents to be vigilant about wearing masks, social distance and hygiene.
“We are still fighting the virus. There is still a lot of community spread, ”Turner said. “And I want to emphasize the importance of test, test, test.”