Last week I volunteered at a vaccination “super site”. I did it for 2 reasons:
-
- To maybe get vaccinated myself, as any leftovers at the end of the day are offered to the volunteers (vaccinations are specifically not guaranteed to volunteers).
- To serve in some capacity to help get us out of this pandemic
As we all know, plenty of healthy adults are lying to get vaccinated. They are claiming asthma, a high BMI, or any other unverifiable health condition in order to get the vaccine before it’s open to everybody. But if this takes a shot away from a higher-risk person who needs it, it could be contributing to that person’s illness or death.
Also, this pandemic is a once-in-a-lifetime event (hopefully). Do you want to look back on it knowing that you lied to get the vaccine? Probably not.
Therefore, I encourage otherwise healthy people who really want the vaccine to get it in a way that doesn’t risk taking it from someone else. In my opinion, trying for a vaccine that will expire and be thrown out anyway is the best option. I found 2 ways to do this:
-
- Get on this list (Dr. B) to be texted when vaccines will be expiring near your zip code, or
- Volunteer at a vaccination site where the daily leftovers go to the volunteers. This is a better bet. Below is what it was like for me:
I started by signing up as a volunteer with the Denton County Medical Reserve Corps and through them, signed up to volunteer at a vaccination site.
On my volunteer day, I had to wake up at 4:30 AM to get ready and drive one hour to the vaccination “super-site”.
At 6:00 AM, I parked at Texas Motor Speedway and found my way to the volunteer check-in table. I signed in, they gave me an orange vest, and asked me if I wanted the vaccine myself if there are any leftovers that day (I said yes). They told me that IF there are going to be leftovers, I would receive a QR Code via text, and I’d have to be back there at 4:00-5:00 PM to get the shot.
It was absolutely freezing out there.
My job. I was assigned to check people in with an iPad. Everything was explained to me quite well:
I would stand under a tent as a stream of cars came towards me. At each car, I would greet them, scan their QR Code, which pulled up their appointment info, and check it against their ID. If everything matched, I would click “Check-in” and send them forward. If there were clerical errors, I could make a note. If they didn’t have an appointment, or there was a big information mismatch, I would have them pull out of line to talk to a supervisor.
Once I got the hang of it, the job was actually fun. The “patients,” most of whom were older, were happy to be there. And I was happy to be greeting them. I got many smiles and “thank you for volunteering” comments. Not to sound cliche, but I was part of something bigger than myself, working towards a noble goal (vaccinating the public against a bad virus) and it felt good.
I made a little small talk with a FEMA employee and couple other volunteers, but there wasn’t too much time to talk. It was painfully cold, my back and legs were getting tired, but the all-around positivity made up for those physical discomforts.
A volunteer came by with a cart containing snacks, water and coffee, but I couldn’t step away to get any. The FEMA employee, who was acting as a floater-helper, was kind enough to make me a coffee and bring it to me. I downed that coffee so fast. It warmed me up.
The time flew by. It was suddenly 11:00, and our section was told to take a 30 minute lunch break. We were offered free BBQ Sandwiches, chips and a soft drink. Most volunteers were sitting alone to eat, social distancing, and I did too.
After lunch, I was back to checking people in, when a supervisor told me that the replacements (second volunteer shift) had arrived. My work was done around noon. I drove home to wait and see if I would get the text message offering a vaccine. I got the text at 2:00 PM. So I drove all the way back to the Texas Motor Speedway to get the shot.
I went back to the volunteer check-in table, and they directed me to a tent next to the “shooting site” where the main patients were getting vaccinated. I walked over and they had a little set-up to give volunteers like me the vaccine. It was quick and painless, and they also told me that in 21 days I’d receive another QR Code for the second shot. I thanked them and drove home.
The following day my wife volunteered at the same place also receiving the vaccine at the end of the day. It seems that there are almost always “leftovers” for the volunteers. I suppose that if 1-2% of around 10,000 scheduled appointments don’t show up, that equals plenty of leftover vaccines by day’s end.
Overall volunteering here was a great experience, and I got a vaccine that would have expired anyway. I encourage everyone capable to do it (I say “capable” because you need to be able to be on your feet for 6 hours).
Please contact me if you have questions about volunteering at a vaccination site.
May we be out of this pandemic soon!
-Rich Reister