plonq | The day I got shot ... again.

I imagine that most of the vaccination sites are about the same everywhere, but I had no idea what to expect yesterday and I was intrigued by how this one ran.

Things started out in a slightly less-than-impressive manner when I arrived at the complex and found an impressively long queue of people stretching from the entrance, around the corner and out of sight. I assumed that it must be the line for walk-ins, and I approached the nearest security guard.

Me: "Where's the line for people with an appointment?"
Him: [Mutely points to the frighteningly long line.]
Me: [Whimpering plaintively and waving my printout.] "But ... but I have an apoiiiintmennnnt!"
Him: [Points to the line again.] That's the line for appointments. It's not as bad as it looks - they take in at least twenty people at a time.

I made my way to the end of the line, grumbling under my breath where I joined a steady stream of other bemused people. I overheard quite a few people voicing similar concerns to mine. "Why did I bother making an appointment when they just put me in the long queue with all the plebeians?"

Almost as if the security guard knew what he was talking about, the line moved remarkably quickly, and in no more than ten minutes I was at the entrance where initial screeners were greeting us.

They verified that we all had appointments for that time, and checked to see if we had already filled out our consent forms, separating the herd into those who did and did not. If we had phones, they presented us with a QR code to scan that called up a pre-screening form to fill out while we waited in line. It asked the usual questions.

Have you experienced any of the following symptoms (x/y/z)?
Have you travelled outside of the province within the past x days?
Have you licked any strangers under dubious circumstances?
Are you, or have you ever been a member of the communist party?
Etc.

When you were done, it returned a full-screen green letter A which you just needed to flash at the final screeners and they'd wave you through. I don't know what it would return if you filled out an answer wrong - a red X, I imagine.

Once inside, I found myself in an indoor soccer complex with a long row of roped-off queues numbered 1 - (presumably) ∞. Another volunteer barked a number at you and pointed in the general direction of your queue. I noticed that none of them had more than two people waiting at any given time, and the one they directed me to had a single person waiting.

From there, I moved up to the final screening station where they checked my consent forms and then sent me to a second screener if any of the selections on the form raised concerns (like mine did). The second screener gathered the details of concern, made some notations on the form and then sent you on to a long line of seats. Once I was seated, another volunteer collected my consent form, told me what to expect from the shot, and asked if I had any final questions or concerns about the upcoming needle.

Next, the rolling vaccination cart made its way down the aisle behind him. The nurse sat in a rolling chair, and a volunteer followed her, pushing along the stabby station (or "the world's shittiest refreshment cart" as I've heard it described). They were very efficient, rolling up your sleeve, slathering on disinfectant and jabbing you with a needle. The process took about one minute per person. And it kinda hurt. Way more than my first shot did.

Finally, a volunteer came down the length of the line, handing out "I'm Vaccinated!" stickers. He told us to stay put for fifteen minutes and gave us some final tips on what to expect post-vaccination, and how to deal with the symptoms. "Flex your arm a lot, drink plenty of fluids, and take Tylenol if needed." Then he handed us each a card with another QR code on it that led to a "how did we do?" survey.

From the time I arrived until I left was about forty minutes, including the fifteen-minute wait after the shot. I'd heard horror stories about these vaccination sites early on, but they seem to have worked out the glitches. The whole process was very fast and efficient. The only downside was that I got stabbed in the arm.

But...