UPMC is teaming up with the Pittsburgh Penguins to vaccinate more than 1,000 high-risk individuals during a clinic at PPG Paints Arena on Monday.
The event, which takes place from 08:00 to 13:00, is by appointment only. Vaccines are offered to those in Phase 1A of the Pennsylvania Vaccine Strategy who have registered to receive a vaccine through UPMC at Vaccine.UPMC.com.
“We are very excited about the partnership with the Pittsburgh Penguins,” said Mark Sevco, president of UPMC Children’s Hospital. He is working on a special assignment for the vaccination of UPMC. “We are grateful to the Penguins for offering their facility and partnership with UPMC.”
During the vaccination clinic, people 65 years and older or those with pre-existing conditions who place themselves in phase 1A will receive their first dose of Moderna vaccine, Sevco said. Before patients leave, they plan a time four weeks later to return for their second dose.
Anyone registered for the clinic will receive a call from UPMC to explain what they can expect, Sevco said.
Patients are asked to arrive 15 minutes early. Volunteers will help provide parking or delivery at the door, Sevco said.
“Once they arrive, they will do a process of reporting to confirm that they are on schedule,” Sevco said. ‘Then we go through an educational process with them and share with them the vaccine they are going to get and what they can expect. Then they get the chance and we have to observe it for safety for 15 minutes. ”
Sevco said the event would go smoothly and be only the first of many in partnership with the Penguins.
“We have a lot of volunteers and a lot of free giving away and planning special things,” he said.
UPMC said it had administered 230,815 doses of covid-19 vaccine as of Friday. There are 363,953 people who added their names to UPMC’s online registration list at Vaccine.UPMC.com – and 50,065 of them are scheduled to receive vaccine doses.
But it still leaves many people anxiously waiting their turn, Sevco admitted. He asked people who want the vaccine and are eligible to register online at Vaccine.UPMC.com or by phone at 844-876-2822.
‘If you’re on the list, our promise is to call them and plan for an event. It’s a bit of a wait, but the good news is that if you’re registered on our site, we’ll contact you, ” Sevco said.
After working on the fronts of the covid-19 pandemic last year, Sevco said he was excited to see mass weight vaccination.
“The enthusiasm of patients appearing at these clinics is very high,” he said. “It’s really exciting.”
Julia Felton is an author of the staff of Tribune-Review. You can contact Julia at 724-226-7724, [email protected] or via Twitter .
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