Organizers: Vaccine event goes smoothly

CLOVIS - Organizers of a COVID-19 vaccine clinic in Clovis said the event went smoothly Monday as Roden Smith Pharmacy and Clovis Family Healthcare began administering 2,500 Moderna vaccines they received from the state.

Dr. Micah Lansford, head of Roden Smith Pharmacy, explained the vaccination process being housed inside the former Raintree Grocery that is scheduled to continue through Friday:

Once patients have registered on the Roden Smith website and are approved for group 1B they will be given a scheduled time to come by the facility. Upon arrival patients will be guided to the building by large signs marking the entrance and exit. Once inside there are clinic workers in safety vests who check paperwork and confirm appointment times. If need be they also have an area set up for those who did not fill out their paperwork ahead of time or forgot it.

Patients are then directed into the building where they submit their papers. After, they will either go directly into one of the four vaccination booths set up inside a large curtained area, or wait in an area marked off for social distancing. Workers at the clinic noted that wait times had been short and far between, as it only takes moments to administer the vaccine.

Inside the vaccination area patients will sit and be administered the vaccine by a pharmacist or qualified Clovis Family Healthcare worker. Behind the booths is an area where Roden Smith pharmacists and other workers prep the vaccines, document their use, and send information immediately to the state.

After receiving the vaccine the patient is then directed to a waiting area where Clovis EMT workers monitor vaccine recipients for 15 minutes in case of any reactions.

Lt. Chris Elam of the Clovis Fire Department volunteered to work at the clinic on its first day. By mid-afternoon Elam said they had vaccinated upward of 250 people Monday, most of them 75 and older but a few from other groups in the 1B phase. He noted that no one had reported a negative reaction, and that after receiving the vaccine himself he only had arm soreness for a few days.

Lansford said the clinic's success so far was due in part to community support. Before the current site was confirmed, the city had considered using a local elementary school gym or the civic center.

However, the Lydick family, owners of the Raintree Grocery property, volunteered use of their building for the event, which worked better in terms of space and accessibility. Also donated were Internet service by Plateau Telecommunications and electricity by Xcel Energy.

Patients must register at rodensmithpharmacy.com/covid-19-updates . Walk-ins will not be accepted, and registrations made through the state website are currently not being shared with Roden Smith.

As of Tuesday morning, the state had administered over 137,000 doses of the approximate 175,000 it has received. Over the past seven days nearly 45,000 people have been vaccinated, according to the New Mexico Department of Health.