Brunswick agency holds first drive-thru vaccination clinic in Maine

Monday’s cold temperatures and high winds couldn’t stop the Independence Association from hosting the first drive-through COVID-19 vaccination clinic in Maine.

The Brunswick nonprofit, which provides housing and other services to adults with developmental disabilities, has immunized approximately 70 clients and 90 caregivers outside of its headquarters at 3 Industrial Parkway. Maine’s Guardian Pharmacy, with its main office next door, staffed the clinic with four pharmacists.

The agency organized the drive-thru because many of its customers have underlying health conditions that put them at greater risk of serious illness and death if they contract COVID-19 and live in environments collectives that increase the chances of spreading the virus.

Lined up in cars, caregivers and their clients moved slowly through check-in, inoculation, and observation points, most simply lowering their windows to receive the first of two Moderna shots in the upper arm. Some in wheelchairs have been vaccinated outside their vehicle.

“We waited patiently for two hours and we are both happy to have received the vaccine,” said Robert Hipp, a direct support professional who led a client to get the vaccine. “It was cold and windy, but it was good to finally get the vaccine.”

The clinic, which operated from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., was the first known COVID-19 drive-thru vaccination effort from the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. With temperatures in the low 30s, the mostly outdoor operation was a bit surprising in the middle of winter in Maine, but it had to take place regardless of the weather.

“We wanted this to happen,” said Ray Nagel, executive director of the Independence Association. “We had about 20 staff running the clinic and they dressed for the role. And the weather was nice, so it was hot if you stayed in the sun.

Nagel said the drive-thru clinic enabled his agency to vaccinate large numbers of people under strict public health and safety protocols and in a relatively short period of time.

“The average wait was around 2 hours,” Nagel said. “It sounds like a long time, but it’s not when you’re trying to be safe and do things in an organized manner.”

Colby Padula, a client of Community Living, receives a first dose of vaccine in Brunswick on Monday. The drive-through clinic, considered Maine’s first, was organized by the Independence Association, which provides housing and other services to adults with developmental disabilities. About 70 clients and 90 caregivers have been vaccinated. Ben McCanna / Staff Photographer

The clinic also limited the risk for clients of contracting COVID-19 during the process, whether or not they were ultimately vaccinated, Nagel said. A few clients refused to be vaccinated after arriving because they were anxious or upset.

Due to the agency’s continued vigilance throughout the pandemic, none of its residential customers have tested positive for the coronavirus, Nagel said.

“We know that people with intellectual and physical disabilities who live in collective premises are at a much higher risk,” Nagel said.

The Independence Association offers three types of housing for people with intellectual and physical disabilities: residential group homes, self-contained apartment communities, and shared housing, all with in-home support to meet individual needs.

A study of over 8 million adults in the UK found that people with Down syndrome are four times more likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19 than the general population and 10 times more likely to die from it, according to the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Down syndrome is a genetic disease associated with immune dysfunction, congenital heart disease and lung disease, according to the British study. It is also the most common congenital disease, occurring in 1 in 700 births, according to the United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

Mali Mrozinski, director at Spindleworks, receives a first dose of vaccine Monday in Brunswick. About 200 service providers and people with intellectual disabilities received the vaccine at a drive-thru vaccination clinic. Ben McCanna / Staff Photographer

Nagel said Maine was ahead of other states as it prioritized residents of long-term and group care facilities in Phase 1A of its vaccination plan, according to the Maine CDC website. Phase 1B, which is slated to begin in February but has already started a slow rollout, includes people aged 70 and over and those with underlying health conditions that put them at high risk of serious illness if they contract the COVID-19, such as Down syndrome. .

The Independence Association pre-registered clients and caregivers before Monday’s clinic, obtaining written consent, medical history and health insurance information in advance, Nagel said. Staff members recorded each car as it arrived, writing down the names, assigning a number to each vehicle and placing an identification sheet under the wiper.

As the line of cars moved under the entrance to the agency’s gantry, staff members took the information sheet inside, where the data was entered into a central online ledger connected to the CDC. from Maine, Nagel said. After the occupants of a car were checked in, a pharmacist exited the waiting vehicle, asked each person several questions about their medical history, and vaccinated each individual.

“It’s very gratifying for me and my team to be a part of the solution,” said Courtney Oland, President and Owner of Guardian Pharmacy of Maine, which serves long term care and community facilities.

Drivers of each car were instructed to go to a waiting area where staff members would observe their reactions to the vaccine for 15 minutes, Nagel said. Drivers were asked to watch for the reactions of others in their cars and to honk the horn if there were any signs of an allergic reaction or other problems; a pharmacist would respond with a self-injecting epinephrine pen and a staff member would call 911.

“There was no medical problem,” Nagel said. A few clients have had panic attacks which were quelled by a pharmacist, he said.

Founded in 1966, Independence Association serves over 400 adults and children in nine counties in Maine who have intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Nagel said his agency would hold a second drive-thru vaccination clinic on February 22 to give a booster shot to clients and caregivers who received a first dose on Monday and give the others the first shots. Ultimately, he said, around 300 clients and nearly 250 staff will be vaccinated.

Robert Hipp, the direct support professional, said his client was looking forward to him.

“She worried about the vaccine for months,” Hipp said. “Now she said she was happy to have him. She’s an artist and she can’t wait to get back to the studio. That’s what she lives for.

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