Second dose vaccines to be delivered at Uniontown Mall clinic
Those coming to the Uniontown Mall clinic for a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine today and tomorrow will be redirected from the former Burlington Coat Factory where they likely received their first dose.
Over the past several days, volunteers spent hours moving Fayette County’s largest vaccine clinic, run by WVU Medicine Uniontown Hospital, into the former Justice and Hallmark stores at the mall. The move, a temporary one, was necessary because the Mon Valley Home Show will occupy the Burlington Coat Factory space over the weekend.
“The good news is not much is changing in terms of where people are coming,” said Kristi Kassimer, the county’s public relations specialist.
Those scheduled for second-dose shots will still come into the mall through the Burlington entrance, she said. Greeters with the county’s COVID-19 Task Force will redirect them to the new location.
The clinic will be moved back to its original location on Monday, and begin vaccinating there again March 25.
Josh Krysak, spokesman for Uniontown Hospital, said the temporary move included transferring all of the vaccination stations, supplies, registration paperwork and cleaning necessities.
Volunteers from the New Meadow Run Bruderhof, the hospital, businesses and others who’ve assisted the task force stepped forward to get the move done, Krysak said.
Those who’ve donated their time to the task force, said its co-chair Muriel Nuttall, have made the mammoth undertaking of vaccinating thousands across several locations, including the mall clinic, possible.
While volunteers fill many roles, Nuttall said one of the biggest is making calls to schedule vaccine doses.
For a Uniontown Hospital clinic where 2,000 shots are given, she said, volunteers can spend in excess of two days making calls. That equates to about 1,000 volunteer hours, Krysak said.
And while it may be frustrating to wait for a call, Nuttall and Krysak stressed the importance of registrants answering the phone when they’re called.
“If the number is local, they should answer the phone if they’ve signed up for the registry,” Krysak said. “The more time we don’t have missed calls, the better it is for our scheduling.”
In addition to the Uniontown Hospital clinic, the task force is also working with several other partners to schedule shots, including Highlands Hospital, Perry Drug in Perryopolis and Hunters Pharmacy in Connellsville.
According to the state Department of Health’s Wednesday report, nearly 42,000 vaccinations have been administered in Fayette County. That includes more than 26,000 first-dose shots.
It’s a number officials said they hope to see take giant leaps forward. But, said Krysak, the task force is limited by how many doses are received from the state.
He said the last couple of weeks hit a “rough patch” procuring shots, but said things are now “headed in the right direction.”
“It’s really a challenge. We’re still never certain we’re going to get doses until roughly the weekend before (a Thursday and Friday clinic),” he said.
The county’s task force continues to focus on those in the 1A group, including frontline workers, those 65 and older and those with certain preexisting conditions.
“While the governor has talked about opening everything up, that is not tangible for us right now,” Krysak said, citing supply issues.
Still, said organizers, those who aren’t in the 1A designation can join the county’s registry. The questions asked during the sign-up process allow organizers to filter out those not yet eligible for a vaccine, while ensuring they’re on a waiting list when they are.
In excess of 20,000 are registered, organizers said.
Patience, they said, remains key.
“Everything about the pandemic has tested our patience … and this is another example of that,” Krysak said.