Blue portable canopies were set up in the parking lot at Santa Barbara’s Earl Warren Showgrounds on Thursday for a vaccination clinic scheduled at the same time as the popular flea market.
The makeshift facility was part of the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department‘s community clinic COVID-19 vaccination program.
People browsed dozens of flea market vendor booths throughout the cloudy morning, and some wandered to the appointment-free COVID-19 vaccination site.
“We did have a good amount of people this morning,” said Daisy Calderon, Lompoc vaccination lead for Public Health. She was on site helping out with Thursday’s event. “I’m seeing a great outcome, and it makes me feel that we’re doing our job as a team.”
For about eight hours, the walk-in COVID-19 vaccine opportunity, with no appointment necessary, was available to the public at Earl Warren Showgrounds.
“We’re out here in the open community, showing them that we’re here to give them that opportunity to get vaccinated while they’re also shopping for their needs in the household,” Calderon said.
“We brought 200 doses with us,” Calderon said.
Members of the vaccination team strolled up and down the aisles of the flea market, asking people if they’ve been vaccinated against COVID-19.
“A lot that I’m encountering say they have been vaccinated,” Calderon said.
They provided vaccine outreach in Spanish and English, and answered questions.
“All we need is an ID and just fill out one of the consent forms,” Calderon told a woman who was shopping at the market.
Santa Barbara County vaccine providers offer appointments and walk-ups available every day, and residents can find locations and hours on California’s MyTurn website, or the county public health website.
Mobile COVID-19 vaccination teams across the county are working to reach people who may not have access to a computer to find and schedule an appointment through online systems, Calderon said.
“Our teams are for the less tech-savvy,” Calderon said. “People in the community that don’t know how to sign up in the system, and also ones who don’t have information like the homeless.
“We’re trying to get most of the community that is low-income based, and they don’t have access to the computer or internet access,” she added.
Some people heard about the walk-up mobile clinic via Facebook and local news, Calderon said.
Shortly before 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, about 12 people received a one-dose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine.
Three more people lined up about 15 minutes later to get a shot.
Santa Barbara County resident Alejandro Vega was one of the first people to roll up his sleeve and get the vaccine.
“My personal doctor sent me here,” he said in Spanish through an interpreter. “I was looking for some sites where I can get the shot but didn’t find it. I have surgery next week, so my doctor sent me here.”
Over the last four weeks, these vaccination teams have administered thousands of doses at community sites all over the county.
Last week, more than 1,500 doses were distributed at 20 clinics, Public Health Department Director Van Do-Reynoso told the county Board of Supervisors Tuesday. The sites ranged from open air markets to shelters, places of worship, farms, and H-2A housing for agricultural workers, she said.
“We are making a commitment with weekly vaccination clinics at our H-2A housing locations,” Do-Reynoso said.
About 30 community clinics have been held at North County sites so far, with another 14 in the mid-county, which is how Public Health classifies the Lompoc and Santa Ynez valleys, and another 17 in the South County.
Here’s how to request a mobile COVID-19 vaccination clinic from Santa Barbara County Public Health.
— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
