Drive Thru Flu Shots Test Preparedness
Huron Valley Ambulance medic prepping a flu vaccination shot for administration as part of Saturday's immunization clinic. (Photo by the writer.)
Last Saturday morning, The Chronicle rolled south down State Street just past I-94, turned right at the Citgo gas station and headed for Huron Valley Ambulance headquarters on State Circle. At 9 a.m. HVA medics and staff had started delivering seasonal flu shots “pit crew style” to motorists who waited in their vehicles at one of four stations in two open garage bays.
The early rush already put two dozen cars ahead of us.
Around 15 minutes later, The Chronicle was immunized against the regular, seasonal flu – but not the H1N1 variant known as “swine flu.”
The drive-through clinic was scheduled to go through 3 p.m., but around 1 p.m. Joyce Williams, HVA’s public affairs manager, began explaining to motorists that the 400 doses they’d started with were gone.
Williams started giving directions to other locations where flu shots were available: Concentra (3131 S. State St. in Ann Arbor – 734.213.6285) as well as a series of clinics through St. Joseph Mercy that are staffed by Michigan Visiting Nurses Association nurses. [Link to .PDF]
For a list of additional seasonal flu shot clinics, the American Lung Association has created a flu shot clinic locator. [Results of ALA locator for 48103 zipcode]
After the jump, more on the HVA clinic, as well as the local arrival of the vaccine against the current H1N1 variant of the flu, which was announced today. [Link to .PDF] [Full Story]