On the doors: Bond gives Rebecca Ford handouts for friends.
Maya McFadden Photo
Director Bond takes down Tori’s registration information during Farmington Canal Trail walk-and-talk.
“She’s ready to get vaccinated!” pediatrician Tamiko Jackson-McArthur called out to city Health Director Maritza Bond.
Jackson-McArthur had just met a 23-year-old woman who hadn’t yet received a Covid-19 shot, but was up for it.
In less than five minute Bond gathered her Tori’s information to get her registered for a vaccination appointment.
Jackson-McArthur and Bond made the sale during a “walk and talk” of Newhallville Tuesday, the latest on-the-ground effort by city leaders to help the grassroots get vaccinated. A group of other outreach workers joined the effort, and got in some healthful exercise in the process.
Already vaccinated: Dr. Jackson and Director Bond.
Since the start of vaccine rollout, the city’s health department has focused on reaching people at the community level to spread the word about safety, said Bond. Toward that end, a team of medical providers and community volunteers canvassed the Farmington Canal Trail area of Newhallville Tuesday to urge the community to get vaccinated.
“Have you all been vaccinated?” Jackson asked a small crowd sitting outdoors at Fussy Coffee by an entrance to the trail. “We can schedule you for an appointment right now if you haven’t.”
Yale student Nathan and friend Tori expressed interest in the opportunity immediately. So Bond headed over to take down registration information. Nathan recently scheduled an appointment for his first dose, though Tori said she had been having a hard time getting an appointment locally since April 1.
“She checks for availability every morning,” said Nathan.
The two said they are confident in the vaccine and hope to get it to travel home to Texas and see family, travel, and keep themselves and the community safe. Bond put Tori’s information into her registration list on her phone and told her to look out for a follow-up from the health department soon with appointment availability.
The group begins down the Farmington Canal Trail.
The canvassing group began at the start of the Farmington Canal Trail at Webster and Canal street.
“We’re here to bring the facts to the community’s hands,” Bond said.
The Tuesday walk-and-talk promoted health in two ways: by urging residents to get vaccinated; and to get out and active safely as the warm weather approaches.
Bond celebrates a recently vaccinated resident.
The group asked walkers, bikers, runners, and dog-walkers on the trail if they were vaccinated. Most responded that they already had or have an upcoming appointment.
Ten minutes into the walk, Bond encountered a woman who hadn’t set up an appointment. She gave Bond her contact information, and Bond promised to get her registered for her first vaccination.
The group gathered about six residents’ information to register for vaccine appointments by the end of the event. Meanwhile, Bond said, she reached 5,200 tracked steps.
The group took the trail down to Division Street, then Science Park.
Bond: I’m so tired of Covid
Before getting off the trial to turn onto Division Street, the group marveled over a painted rock reading “Stop Covid.” Bond stopped for the team to capture a photo of her stomping out the “virus.”
Once the team got onto Division Street. they decided they would also begin door knocking. Information flyers were left under inaccessible residents’ door mats.
On the doors: Bond gives Rebecca Ford handouts for friends.
When Bond knocked at Division Street resident Rebecca Ford’s door, she introduced herself, then asked “have you been vaccinated?” Ford eagerly stepped out her door and announced that she had just gotten her second shot Monday.
“Thank you so much for keeping our community safe,” Bond responded.
Ford said she was mostly motivated to get the vaccine because of her high-functioning autistic son. “Everything with Covid makes him paranoid, so it was my duty,” she said.
Ford encouraged others to use MyChart to schedule an appointment as she did. “I could never get through when I called in somewhere, but MyChart got me and my son an appointment,” she said.
Ford’s son will get vaccinated Wednesday with his first dose, she said.
Canvassing group gets their steps in.
Jackson-McArthur joined to be a in-person model of someone who has been vaccinated. “I got vaccinated, and I’m OK,” she said. “We want to get community spread as close as possible to zero.”
Before heading back down the trail the team left a stack of information sheets for customers at ConnCAT’s Orchid Café.
The walk-and-talk initiative is an expansion of the health department’s vaccine efforts. In addition Bond announced that the health department will soon partner with Griffin Hospital to provide mobile vaccine sites out of vans capable of administering 80 to 100 Johnson & Johnson doses per day for underserved communities in New Haven.
Thank you to all the volunteers getting the word out and helping people get registered for their vaccines. The sooner we are all vaccinated and stop the spread of the virus, the sooner we can get back to our normal routines without fear.