Editor:
Re: Vaccine clinic access frustrates, June 17 letters
I appreciate the fact that the South Surrey Recreation Centre vaccination clinic is not ideal, but then no place is perfect for everybody.
As a retired nurse who worked in a ‘flu’ clinic in another province during the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, I believe that the rec centre is an ideal location to serve large groups of people. The large space allows for social distancing and numerous people can be vaccinated in a timely manner. People do not have to stand in line for hours on end and do not have to worry about being unable to maintain social distance while in line.
Mr. Schultz-Lorentzen stated that when he had his vaccination, there were very few clients. This would not be the case at all times. When I was vaccinated at the centre on June 8 around supper time, almost all stations were occupied and the staff were very busy. I was very impressed at how smooth the whole process was.
The large space allows for a very organized efficient operation plus the fact that people have an enormous amount of space in which to wait indoors in the case of inclement weather, is a real asset.
I think that equating the decision of location to elder abuse is a bit extreme. In fact, I am aware that many seniors residences brought the vaccines to their clientele, however, I do realize that not all seniors live in such facilities.
Does Mr. Schultz-Lorentzen have a suggestion for a more appropriate location while taking into account all the space that is required, including adequate parking spaces for clients as well as staff and space for emergency vehicles in the case of a person developing an anaphylactic reaction following vaccination?
Organizing a huge project such as a COVID-19 vaccination centre takes an incredible amount of strategic planning as many issues have to be taken into consideration. It’s not as simple as setting up a few tables at a church jumble sale, which, by the way is not a simple task either.
And bear in mind that vaccination clinics are not just in our little neck of the woods; hundreds of clinics have had to be organized throughout the entire province, therefore we the public may not want to criticize unless we have better, concrete solutions.
Bravo to the organizers.
Maria Walsh, South Surrey
