Worth to host drive-thru flu shot clinic
Jennifer Maddox Parks
SYLVESTER — Three weeks after residents in Dougherty County had the opportunity to roll down their car windows and roll up their sleeves for the flu vaccine, their neighbors to the east will have a chance to as well.
From 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on Oct. 28, residents of Worth County will be able to participate in its first drive-thru flu shot clinic at the Worth County Agricultural Pavilion on the corner of Highway 313 and Rebecca Drive.
“We want to be able to get the community together,” said Gina Connell, director of the Worth County Health Department. “We wanted to drill our community to make sure they are able to handle it.”
The cost is $25 per dose. The health department accepts cash, checks, Medicaid, Medicare, PeachState, WellCare and AmeriGroup as well as the state health benefit plans of United Healthcare and Cigna.
Other community partners involved in helping plan the event include the city of Sylvester; the Worth County Commission Office; the Worth County Sheriff’s Office; Sylvester Police Department; Phoebe Worth Medical Center; Department of Family and Children Services; Georgia Department of Transportation; Worth County Public Works; Worth County Board of Education; Sylvester Fire Department; Worth County Fire/Rescue; Water, Gas & Light; Worth County Extension Office and the Southwest Health District Office of All-Hazards Preparedness.
This event will make the Worth County Health Department the first in the Southwest Public Health District to conduct a mass prophylaxis distribution drill that is fully self-sufficient — which means no other county will be helping them.
“All the volunteers, people asking questions and observants are from Worth County,” Connell said. “I think it will be a positive thing. People will have a more positive outlook for us doing this on our own.”
The Georgia Emergency Management Agency requires communities to perform emergency preparedness drills. Functional exercises, such as the upcoming drive-thru clinic, are to be conducted twice a year.
“This will count as one of them,” said Worth County Emergency Management Agency Deputy Director Jason Brooks. “This is a good thing for us.”
In order to make the process faster, vaccination forms can be filled out beforehand to bring to the clinic. They will be available at the Worth County Chamber of Commerce, the Board of Commissioners’ Office in the Worth County Courthouse, the Worth County Health Department, Phoebe Worth Medical Center, Poulan City Hall, Sumner City Hall, Sylvester City Hall, Warwick City Hall, Heritage Bank, Colony Bank, Sylvester Banking Company and SunTrust Bank.
“It will speed up the process so people can get away quicker,” Connell said.
Phoebe Worth is participating in the exercise by sending “patients” there with symptom cards as part of the exercise.
While the hospital’s emergency room manager, Dawn Chapman, didn’t want to reveal too much more about what is going on that day, she did say exposing Phoebe Worth’s staff to a situation where they might come across a biohazard better helps them prepare for the real thing.
“I want our community to have the best opportunity to get the flu shot, but it is also a drill for (hospital staff) and EMS in case there is a biomass event where we would have to do mass vaccinations,” Chapman said. “They (the Worth County Health Department) asked us to participate and we incorporated it all together.
“I’m hoping to see a big response from the community. We are allowing the community to get to know us so they trust Phoebe Worth to take care of them.”
For most people that bring in the paperwork already filled out, the entire process can be as quick as 10 minutes. Forms will also be available on-site the day of the clinic, where workers will be present to assist people with the paperwork.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending individuals six months of age or older be vaccinated against the flu. Only flu shots will be available at the clinic.
In Southwest Georgia, flu season arrives in the fall and typically peaks in February.
Related Articles
Albany police make arrests in murder, robbery cases
Officials with the Albany Police Department have announced a number of arrests in cases that involved a homicide and a pair of thefts.
Dougherty Jail graduates first class of female GED recipients
“It was an escape. I can say this has been challenging. I want to express my gratitude for being able to attend this program.”
From cotton to cloud: In the data center debate, is rural Georgia once again being asked to carry the cost?
Across much of rural Georgia, the abandoned cotton warehouses and shrinking tax bases remain — enduring reminders that industries built to serve distant markets do not necessarily stay rooted in the communities that first sustained them.
