Mass vax, appt. only, x2?

[Carrie12345]

I just got back from my 2nd shot.

First “drive thru clinic” was about 3,000 shots. It all went very smoothly. It took me about 10-15 minutes in line for registration and in line for injection, combined.  Appointments for both the first and second shots were all made simultaneously, so today should have been pretty much the same, right?

There were basically no lines today.  I drove my car right into the registration area. They moved us to the injection area almost before I even finished signing my paperwork. There was exactly 1 car in front of me for the injection line.
(To be a little clearer, I’m talking about a multi-lane situation, not literally 1 person ahead of me in the whole place. But still the same set up as last time.)

I can imagine a little bit of improved efficiency after a little bit of practice, but there’s really no denying that there were many fewer cars on Shot 2 Day than there were on Shot 1 Day.  Is this a thing anyone else has noticed? I’m a little bit freaked out by it.

[J-rap]

I went to a much smaller venue for my vaccine, but did notice the same thing for the second shot.  I attributed it to them keeping open a slot for everyone's second vaccine, but not everyone being able to make it on that day exactly and thus are coming on a different day for their second shot. 

[Paige]

We had the same experience. It took me about 30-45 min to get my first shot from checking in at the gate to leaving the parking lot. Dh's first line was a little shorter than mine, but nothing like our 2nd shots. It took us only about 15 min the 2nd time- including waiting 10min after- we basically didn't have to pause at all. 

We had to make an appointment for the 2nd shot before leaving after getting the first shot- you were not told just to come back. At first I thought I must have picked a less popular time for my 2nd shot but I think people are not returning for scheduled appointments as I've been hearing of similar experiences from many people no matter what time or day they went back.

Dh took the kids who were old enough for their first shots yesterday and he said the lines were similar to our first shot experiences. I expect they will sail through with little wait when they go back.  

[TexasProud]

Honestly, most people that want it have gotten it in our area.  We are at atoun 23 percent vaccinated.  I have talked to many people this week that have already had Covid.  No big deal. Won’t vaccinate.  Just way it is. 

[City Mouse]

My second was much more crowded that my first shot. 
One issue tha has me up here is that the second appointment is assigned automatically, and there is no way to adjust or ask for a different day or time. My DD was not able to go to her assigned 2nd appointment, and she is having a very hard time trying to get the 2nd shot now.

[sassenach]

I think there are 1) more locations to get vaccinated as time goes on, 2) an ebb and flow of appointments depending on supply, 3) demand is starting to dwindle because those who want it have gotten it.

My county is very pro-vaccine and we're sitting at about 50% of the county with both shots and 70% with one. Two mega-sites just consolidated into one. I think we've got maybe a month or two before the mega-site is no longer necessary. DD, who has been working a mega site in Orange County, CA just had her contract extended through August. Just depends on the area.

[Carrie12345]

Just to clear up any confusion, today was ONLY for 2nd shot, ONLY for registered people.  So not wanting it wouldn’t be a factor. I would expect anyone who didn’t want the shot not to have been there on the first shot day.

I’m not sure how rescheduling might be getting handled.  IIRC, I was able to schedule both time slots, but there were/are no dates to choose. This site has only scheduled 2 rounds (two first shot days about a week and a half or two weeks apart, and two second shot days, same gap of course.) And that second one wasn’t announced until after the first one had been done.  It’s not an ongoing event.

[*Jessica*]

I’ve read reports that some people who got the first shot aren’t returning for the second, presumably due to (normal, expected) reactions that they didn’t want to repeat.  Hopefully that isn’t the case, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it accounted for at least some of the reduced numbers.  

[HeartString]

I got my first shot about 45 minutes from my house at a mass event about a week and a half before the local hospital starting having open spots every afternoon.  I have an appointment at the same spot 45 min. away for my second shot but I have considered how much more convenient it would be to just drive 10 min and do a walk in appointment at the local hospital.  I won’t do it, but I wouldn’t be surprised if a bunch people do, especially people that work or have tighter schedules.  That might explain why a 2nd appointment only clinic might be less full, if people found more convenient alternative.  

[busymama7]

1 hour ago, Carrie12345 said:

I just got back from my 2nd shot.

First “drive thru clinic” was about 3,000 shots. It all went very smoothly. It took me about 10-15 minutes in line for registration and in line for injection, combined.  Appointments for both the first and second shots were all made simultaneously, so today should have been pretty much the same, right?

There were basically no lines today.  I drove my car right into the registration area. They moved us to the injection area almost before I even finished signing my paperwork. There was exactly 1 car in front of me for the injection line.
(To be a little clearer, I’m talking about a multi-lane situation, not literally 1 person ahead of me in the whole place. But still the same set up as last time.)

I can imagine a little bit of improved efficiency after a little bit of practice, but there’s really no denying that there were many fewer cars on Shot 2 Day than there were on Shot 1 Day.  Is this a thing anyone else has noticed? I’m a little bit freaked out by it.

Some of the people there the first day you were could have been getting their second if they were in a higher tier, right?

[Pawz4me]

When you got your first shot there could have been people there getting both their first shots and some getting their second shots. That's what was going on when DH got his first. When he went for his second, though, there were only people getting their second shots. They weren't giving out any first shots at that location that day. So there were fewer people than when he got his first shot. Could that have happened?

 

[mommyoffive]

3 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

When you got your first shot there could have been people there getting both their first shots and some getting their second shots. That's what was going on when DH got his first. When he went for his second, though, there were only people getting their second shots. They weren't giving out any first shots at that location that day. So there were fewer people than when he got his first shot. Could that have happened?

 

Yep this.  I was sitting in a chair during my after shot time that was by the 2nd check in table where people were saying they were there for the 1st or 2nd.  During my time there were a lot more people there for their 2nd than there for the 1st. 

[Carrie12345]

5 minutes ago, busymama7 said:

Some of the people there the first day you were could have been getting their second if they were in a higher tier, right?

 

3 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

When you got your first shot there could have been people there getting both their first shots and some getting their second shots. That's what was going on when DH got his first. When he went for his second, though, there were only people getting their second shots. They weren't giving out any first shots at that location that day. So there were fewer people than when he got his first shot. Could that have happened?

 

Not as far as I can tell.  The scheduling software was for two appointments.
I’m sure it’s not impossible that individual physicians might have had access to schedule their patients around that, but it’d be weird. I know it works different in every state but, here, 2nd shots get reserved at the time of the first shot. There’s no real going to the hospital for shot 1 and then to CVS or another site for shot 2 whenever they might have it available for you. The hospital (for dh and one dd), CVS (other dd,) or mass site (me) earmark that second shot.

(OTOH, my parents left their first shot in another state without a 2nd appointment and had to go through the whole scheduling nightmare a second time. Dumb system.)

[Carrie12345]

I made myself look it up, lol. Duh. I erased specifics and didn’t bother to put blanks in. Emphasis is mine though.

 

“The first will be held at on 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. On this date, we expect to administer 3,000 first doses of the Moderna vaccine.”

It’s sinking in that some may have been able to find closer places for 2nd doses. I’m very much NOT used to having anything important available locally.  I had to drive dd an hour for Pfizer.  But this particular site happens to be LITERALLY down the main road from me. It did not cross my mind that this could be inconvenient to other people when I’m used to everything being inconvenient and this wasn’t, lol.

[Terabith]

My husband has worked a bunch of the hospital's big vaccination clinics.  They had a bunch with 6,000 people a day.  Today was only 2,000, because there are more vaccine vendors and because so many of the people who want it have already gotten it.  

He says that at his clinics, if you have an appointment for that day, they will vaccinate you when you come, even if it's at a different time.  So there have been a lot of instances where multiple family members have appointments for the same day, but hours apart (because of computer scheduling).  They don't care, and will vaccinate all family members with appointments that day.  (Actually, they've gotten less strict about the "have to have an appointment" thing.  They even had a walk in clinic yesterday.)

However, he says that times "clump."  So right when they open, there's a big line of people at 8 am, but then it will spread out and there won't be lines for hours, although usually a steady stream of people.  Then around noon there's another big clump of folks.  

The difference may have been in timing, but it also could easily be that people found closer places to get their second shots.  Also possible that some people decided not to get their second shot because of side effects or what not.  

[Paige]

At our location they either only do first shots or only do 2nd shots on certain days. 

[Catwoman]

2 hours ago, TexasProud said:

Honestly, most people that want it have gotten it in our area.  We are at atoun 23 percent vaccinated.  I have talked to many people this week that have already had Covid.  No big deal. Won’t vaccinate.  Just way it is. 

I hope a whole lot more than 23% of the people in your area will choose to be vaccinated. That is an abysmally low number, and it both saddens and angers me to hear about it. 

[athena1277]

2 hours ago, StillJessica said:

I’ve read reports that some people who got the first shot aren’t returning for the second, presumably due to (normal, expected) reactions that they didn’t want to repeat.  Hopefully that isn’t the case, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it accounted for at least some of the reduced numbers.  

I’ve heard this, as well as that some people are worried that on e were not, because of the concerns with the J&J and AstraZenica.  The news has been pointing out that they are a different kind of vax than Moderna and Pfiser. 

[Annie G]

We had our 2nd this week and noticed the same thing. The person actually giving the shot said it’s a lot faster now than three weeks ago because they’re getting used to it and aren;t as nervous about making mistakes, and are fielding a lot fewer questions from patients and such. We did notice that from check in to being done that everyone seemed more confident, laid back, etc. So I think it’s not as new and they’ve become more automatic with their procedures.   We had a time slot and the first time we got there people were already in line even if their appt was a half hour later. This time people seemed to mind the signs that said stay in your car until your appt time, which helped a lot for the folks finding your name on the list and letting you in according to appt time. There simply weren’t so many people in line ahead of time.

[Mrs Tiggywinkle]

We are locally having a massive problem with people skipping their second shot.  I don’t know if that’s a problem for you.

Paramedics here are doing most of the vaccination clinics. It’s bad enough that the county has reduced the number of medics they’re asking for.  For the first shot we were sending six medics. Today, for the second shot clinic, they only had enough sign ups for two medics to be requested.

when we call to follow up and see if people want to reschedule, it seems to be that people had really uncomfortable side effects the first time and/or have heard bad things about the second shot and side effects.  Most people by now know someone who’s had Covid, or have had Covid themselves,  and I hear a lot of “The shot side effects are much worse than covid itself.”  

Edited April 17, 2021 by Mrs Tiggywinkle

[dsmith]

I was vaccinated at one of the mega sites in our state. I noticed a big increase in the amount of people there when I went for the second shot, but it also went a lot faster. They had opened more check-in tables, vaccination booths and recovery areas. They do 1st and 2nd shots on the same day. I haven't heard of any places separating them, but I could see if it was a special vaccination event it would be handled that way. I can't say I wasn't tempted to get my second shot at a different location ( I hate crowds and lines) but where I went runs faster than the smaller venues in my area. 

[kirstenhill]

DH got his second shot today at a mass vaccination event and he said it was about the same in terms of levels of people there.  He was running about half an hour late (forgot his card the first time he left the house) and they didn't even ask him about the appointment time.  He thinks people may have figured this out and just came whenever they pleased.  

On the other hand I talked to an older gentleman at church today who had 3 weeks of headaches after his first shot and is delaying his second with the possibility of not getting it.  He isn't sure he wants to go through it again (even though he knows he may not have the same reaction the second time).

[Farrar]

Our only second shot experience so far was ds. Clinic was only for the 16/17's. Not only was it more crowded (they were doing second shots and first ones), but we recognized the exact same people as before, lol. I was like, oh, look, that's the girl who was in front of you last time. Oh, and look, the boy who went in after you.

[J-rap]

On 4/17/2021 at 11:14 AM, HeartString said:

I got my first shot about 45 minutes from my house at a mass event about a week and a half before the local hospital starting having open spots every afternoon.  I have an appointment at the same spot 45 min. away for my second shot but I have considered how much more convenient it would be to just drive 10 min and do a walk in appointment at the local hospital.  I won’t do it, but I wouldn’t be surprised if a bunch people do, especially people that work or have tighter schedules.  That might explain why a 2nd appointment only clinic might be less full, if people found more convenient alternative.  

I was wondering how easy/difficult it would be to do this.  (Get your first shot at one place, and your second at another.)  My dd had her first vaccine just a week ago and had to drive an hour to get there.  Now suddenly a large site is opening up about 10 minutes away!

[SoCal_Bear]

@kand I read the same thing but from the CDC's data following whether or people were getting their 2nd shot on time.

[Mrs Tiggywinkle]

6 hours ago, kand said:

 

That must be a localized problem, as the overall statistics have been very good for people getting their second shot. I’ve seen one study that said 96% of people had returned for their second shot, and another which said 3% had not (https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-cdc-idUSKBN2B72D1)

I’m thinking more convenient locations opening is very likely. Vaccines are hard to find here, and I know a fair number of people who drove hours to get their first one at a mass vaccination site. They may be able to get somewhere closer for their second. 

We have very convenient locations, but I think the issue is that it’s been extremely available here for weeks now, and the people who really wanted the vaccine already got it.  Now we’re seeing people who aren’t as interested in it and skew younger, as it’s open to everyone 16+ now.  The main reason, as I posted in another thread, is we have an impoverished population that can’t afford risking two or three days off work from side effects.  They’re either blasé about vaccination or scared of the second vaccine.

[cintinative]

I'm not sure if this answers your question, but my husband only had to wait five minutes after receiving his second shot, versus fifteen for his first. Also, his appointment for his second shot was later in the morning than the first.  He was able to get in and out for his shot (it was in a parking garage so a drive-thru format) very quickly for the second, versus the first where there was a big backup of cars waiting to get into the parking garage (he was the first appt of the day).  So it *could* be that the appointments were at different times, or that reduced wait time due to lack of allergic response to the first shot? 

I am curious how it will work with mine. The first shot we had to wait in a long line, fill out paperwork, check in with one person, then talk to the person administering the shot while a tech entered information in the computer, etc. So I would think the second time it would go much, much more quickly. 

[EKS]

At our mass vaccination site, which admittedly isn't in any way like the OP's, there were a lot fewer people there when I got my first dose (March 20) than when I got my second (April 10).  Same day of the week, same time of day.

That said, I know that there is significantly less demand now than there was a few weeks ago.  

Edited April 19, 2021 by EKS

[SoCal_Bear]

I can report in CA...it is very challenging to try to get in a vaccine appointment. I know people who have driven more than 100 miles to find one.

 

[SeaConquest]

54 minutes ago, calbear said:

I can report in CA...it is very challenging to try to get in a vaccine appointment. I know people who have driven more than 100 miles to find one.

 

In SD? I have helped lots of people get appointments and all of my friends were able to get them without any issues. I got my husband one a month ago that was the next day. I did notice that it was more difficult, the closer you are to the coast. I had better luck in more "red" areas. My husband went to the Moderna clinic at Palomar, which is a bit of a schlep from PB, but certainly not 100 miles. So, that's what I have been doing to help other people find appointments. Places like Santee, El Cajon, Escondido were easier than in coastal SD.

[Lecka]

They are opening appointments here for “2nd doses only” so people who drove for their first appointment don’t need to drive for the second one.  It has just gotten easier to get appointments here without driving an hour.  
 

I also drove for my appointments and didn’t know just how long to allow for traffic etc, got there 30+ minutes early, and was allowed to go when I got there both times.

 

Its true here that demand is already going down, but I don’t think people are skipping second doses.  I think people are sometimes making other arrangements, though, because of a conflict or just an easier way to get the second dose.  

[Lecka]

I am also curious if maybe a lot of people were getting second doses the first time around, then maybe there were just fewer people getting first doses the first time you went? 

[SoCal_Bear]

3 hours ago, SeaConquest said:

In SD? I have helped lots of people get appointments and all of my friends were able to get them without any issues. I got my husband one a month ago that was the next day. I did notice that it was more difficult, the closer you are to the coast. I had better luck in more "red" areas. My husband went to the Moderna clinic at Palomar, which is a bit of a schlep from PB, but certainly not 100 miles. So, that's what I have been doing to help other people find appointments. Places like Santee, El Cajon, Escondido were easier than in coastal SD.

No in Bay Area...for driving that far to Central Valley or Sierra Foothills.

 

 

Edited April 19, 2021 by calbear

[JenneinCA]

I am in the Bay Area.  There are plenty of appointments at Levi Stadium starting on Sunday, April 25.  Gilroy High School and the Fairgrounds both have plenty of appointments starting on Wednesday.