Chapel Hill, North Carolina – UNC Health began Phase 1B delivery of the COVID-19 vaccine on Monday, meaning people 75 and older could start receiving the vaccine.
The lines were short and tidy, and people came in and out in less than half an hour.
The scene was a departure from some of the long lines and chaos that has accompanied some scenes from the health department of several counties. UNC attributes the simple and straightforward procedure to allowing visitors by appointment only.
What was a vaccine like on the first day of phase 1B?
Judith Crook, 76, couldn’t believe how easy it was to get an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccine with UNC Health.
“After three minutes, the graphic sent me an email telling me that your appointment had been scheduled,” Crook said.
Glenn Kaluka, who also received a vaccine today, said, “I understand that in some sections or cities it was a little harder. But that went really well.”
Inner experience involves verifying personal information, getting the vaccine, and controlling it for 15 minutes.
“It was a very easy procedure. It went really well. Everyone was very kind there, which I appreciated,” Kaluka said.
Vaccines are not limited to current patients in the UNC Health System. Anyone 75 years of age or older can get it.
Plans to expand vaccination sites
The goal is to increase the number of people who can be vaccinated each day, while restricting the need for the elderly to be exposed to waiting in long lines.
While Friday Center is the number one location, UNC Health plans to have up to a dozen locations statewide.
“Today we started smoothly. We only have a few hundred left to understand our process,” said Dr. David Wohl, a professor of medicine in the Infectious Diseases Division at UNC Health.
He said the launch has gone very well and they hope to continue streamlining their process so that more people can get vaccinated quickly and without having to wait.
“We don’t want people to have to spend a lot of time here,” he said.
Wohl said the plan is to double capacity by Tuesday and continue to double as long as the supply of vaccines can be maintained.
There are more than 700,000 people over the age of 75 in North Carolina, about 7% of the population. Approximately 85,000 of them live in the Triangle.
To date, in Phase 1A, UNC has vaccinated more than 21,000 health workers, including 3,000 second doses that began last week.
Anyone over the age of 75 can go to YOURSHOT.ORG and sign up for an appointment after filling out a small questionnaire.
Looking for information on how to get vaccinated in your county? WRAL has compiled a list of vaccine information by county.