SPOKANE, Wash. – All eyes have been on Spokane’s mass vaccination site, where thousands of shots have been administered since its opening.
But, what’s taking place at the smaller clinics? Mt. Spokane Pediatrics has been certified to also administer the COVID-19 vaccine. Before Spokane’s mass vaccination site opened, they were administering them, but as of right now they’re not making appointments.
The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) said they want to vaccinate as many people as possible, but their supply just isn’t there.
In the beginning, they were getting close to 300 vaccines, but overtime that dwindled from a few hundred to 50, and now zero.
“We were quite frustrated that at the same time that the health department got us added to their website, and PhaseFinder, was the same time they drastically cut our doses,” Schilt said.
Schilt said at their busiest, they were receiving close to 200 phone calls a day regarding vaccine appointments, now they are getting around 100. For the last two weeks, Mt. Spokane Pediatrics has not received any vaccine at all despite putting in a request every Friday.
“When it goes up and down like this, we don’t know how to schedule, or how to staff,” Schilt said. “We are flying blind.”
Not getting vaccines has made them decide not to schedule appointments. They said the fluctuation makes it hard for them to schedule, adding there’s a lot of behind-the-scenes work that goes into vaccinating someone.
The scheduling time, the staff, the paperwork, it all needs to be in order before you arrive.
Schilt said that there’s a documentation process that staff needs to be on hand for, nurses need to be available, it’s not just a simple as a poke. Their understanding is that the mass vaccination site is being prioritized when it comes to vaccine shipment.
“I think logistically the health department for whatever reason felt that [the mass site] was more effective to send those doses for now,” Schilt said.
Schilt explains that due to the fluctuation and the lack of vaccine they would rather not make future appointments so they don’t have to cancel on people when requests from the state are not met.
Mt. Spokane Pediatrics is a vaccine site that serving North Spokane, so areas like Mead, Colbert, Deer Park and the Green Bluff area.
In feedback that Mt. Spokane Pediatrics has received from patients, it’s been articulated that it’s more convenient for elderly members of the population who live around there to commute to that location versus the mass site.
Schilt said they are optimistic that more doses will be available to them, they have put in their request for this week and they’re waiting to find out how many they’ll receive on Friday.
Mt. Spokane Pediatrics and Schilt reiterated that Spokane Regional Health has been extremely helpful and recognizes that the issue lies with lack of vaccine and is not placing blame on the health department.
