Park Pop-Ups Cut Vaccine Red Tape

Danielle Desanti was eager to land a vaccination appointment — so when an opportunity arose Wednesday, she raced to grab it.

That opportunity came at a no-appointments-needed pop-up Covid-19 vaccination clinic held Wednesday at Salperto Park at 360 Woodward Ave.

Destani, 44, received a text from her friend Wednesday alerting her to the pop-up.

“I flew over here,” Destani said. “It was hard to get an appointment because I’m just under the eligibility of 45 years old and up. I was looking everywhere. I actually just got an appointment today for Monday, but then I got the text about today, so obviously the sooner the better.”

Griffin Hospital administered 100 J&J “one-and-done” vaccines on Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. It had arranged for 150 walk-up shots. (Griffin Hospital management did not declare what happened to the leftover 50 vaccines.)

People who showed up were grateful for the chance to bypass sometimes frustrating encounters with websites or on-hold phone calling to try to land a vaccination appointment. More vaccination pop-ups are popping up Thursday and Friday: the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) will conduct pop-ups on the New Haven Green both days from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (These do require signing up in advance for appointments. To do so, call 855-691-6369 or visit http://griffinhealth.org/newhaven.)

Christine Gill, 54, lives near Salperto Park and showed up to Wednesday’s pop-up. She had made previous numerous attempts to get an appointment for a vaccination. Like Desanti, she had been stuck in the middle because of just barely missing the 55 year-old eligibility for the previous pool of vaccinations. She said that once her age group was eligible, she was unable to find any availability.

“I knew that if I just exercised some patience that sooner or later something would become available. I’m so excited that I was finally able to find a place to get the vaccine,” Last name said. “The fact it’s a J&J vaccine is just a bonus.” Unlike other vaccines, J&J inoculations require just one shot.

Jade Clark, 26, said at first she didn’t want to get vaccinated. Then her husband, who is a chemist at Yale, convinced her. Clark has a lot of family members who are anti-vaccination. The Covid-19 vaccination was new, and Clark distrusted the approval process. She worried it wasn’t safe.

“I don’t think how the vaccine is made is something people really know about,” Clark said. ​“My husband had to convince me that the vaccine has to still go through tons and tons of regulation. It’s not something that was just thrown out there. I don’t think people, especially those who don’t want the vaccine, realize that.”

This reporter received her one-and-done vaccination too. My dose was a quick and painless process. I must admit that when I first heard about Covid-19 vaccinations, I wasn’t exactly eager to receive my shot. I’ve never been a huge fan of receiving vaccines, and I was concerned that it would be just my luck to have an allergic reaction. (This suspicion came into play when I dyed my hair last week and had an outbreak of hives all over my face.) Now that I’d been to several Covid-19 vaccination clinics while reporting with the Independent, I was motivated to take care of the people in my city by doing my part not to contract or spread the coronavirus.

The Griffin Hospital nurse who gave me my shot said my concern was a valid one. She had me sit for an extra 15 minutes in the observance corner after receiving my dose.

Those who are between 16 and 18 years old are permitted to receive Pfizer vaccines only. The Moderna and J&J vaccines have not approved anyone under 18.

Kevin Buterbaugh, a Southern Connecticut State University political science professor, received his Moderna vaccine this past Friday. His son, Lucas Bosch, was told that he was expected to receive his Covid-19 shot. Bosch was originally scheduled to receive the dose in early May. Then the family heard through the Salperto Park pop-up through social media. They headed over.

“We didn’t want him to get Covid-19 and end up in the hospital. We also would like it so that he isn’t likely to spread the virus, if he did get it, and give it to somebody else,” Buterbaugh said. ​“We would love to travel to Germany to see my wife’s family, so we can’t travel unless we’re all vaccinated.”

Bosch, 18, said that he didn’t need to be pushed by his father to receive the vaccine. Bosch said that he’s happy to get his summer back and finds it frustrating that there are people who remain on the fence about receiving their vaccination. He said that it’s an effortless way of keeping everyone safe.

“I couldn’t care less what kind of vaccine I received,” Bosch said. ​“I am not afraid of vaccines, not to mention I’m safe now. I’ve got a summer now. First off, it’s safe to get the vaccine. Second off, it’s not only about you. It’s about protecting others. There are people out there who can not get the vaccine and who would depend on us to basically save their lives.”