CLEVELAND — The mass vaccination site at the Wolstein Center will start taking hundreds of people beginning at 8 a.m. Tuesday. On Monday, we got a step-by-step preview of what you can expect when you go there to get your shot.
PARKING
First things first, parking. There are five lots including the South Garage across from the center at E. 21st Street and Carnegie Avenue. Four other lots are located along Carnegie Ave. Look for signs.
From the lots, you can walk to the center or a shuttle will take you from the lots to a drop-off area at E. 21st Street and Carnegie Avenue.
For those with accessibility issues, there’s a drop-off along Prospect Avenue between E. 18th and E. 21st streets. If you need a wheelchair, volunteers will have them at the drop-off. If you’re coming by bus, there’s an RTA drop-off station at E. 21st Street and Prospect Ave.
WHERE AND WHEN TO SHOW UP
You should get to your scheduled appointment no more than 15-20 minutes ahead of time. If you’re able to walk in, you’ll go through Gate B. Those who need more physical help will go through Gate A.
“The very first thing you’re going to come to is a temperature check. Anything over 100.4, we’re going to have to ask you to get your shot another day,” said Brig. General Rebecca O’Connor, who is the Joint Task Force Magnus Commander.
She told us you need to wear a mask that follows CDC guidelines. If you don’t have one, they will have a mask for you. They also emphasized that you cannot just show up and expect a shot. You have to sign up ahead of time. “When they register, they should get the email with the QR code,” said O’Connor. “That’s going to be the easiest way to flow through here.”
You can use the QR code from your phone, or print out your confirmation email and bring it with you, or they can look up your info on site.
If you speak a language other than English, there are interpreters there who can help and machines that use more than 240 languages to communicate information.
HOW YOU GET YOUR SHOT
Once you make your way to the floor of the center, there are 480 seats with 32 carts that will be going up and down the rows giving you a health screening and then a shot. “And then (patients) spend the rest of the time in that seat. We are not asking them to move from station to station,” said O’Connor.
They hope to make it all a fluid process as the carts roll along. “By the time the time (vaccinators) get to the end, the (patients) in the front will have waited their 15 minutes (and then they can leave),” O’Connor told News 5.
For those with accessibility issues, they won’t have to walk to the floor. There’s a separate area on the main level that holds 88 chairs and wheelchairs. “We can size this up or reduce it down based on the amount of demand that we have for this area,” said the general. “And we’ll flex it based on what we’re seeing.”
A soft opening started today to work out some kinks, then more patients will be added per day throughout the rest of the week. The site will be in use for at least the next eight weeks from 8 a.m.-8 p.m.
If you have any questions during the process, look for people wearing a blue or yellow vest. Again, you will need to sign up for this event in advance online.