LYNN — Congressman Seth Moulton visited the Lynn Tech vaccination site on Thursday afternoon to thank frontline workers and learn more about how the clinic is working to combat vaccine hesitancy.
Moulton toured the site with Lynn Community Health Center’s (LCHC) Chief Operating Officer Kimberly Eng and Nurse Practitioner Marita Gove, where they updated him on their efforts within the community.
According to Eng, the site is currently vaccinating about 2,500 people per week, as opposed to the almost 7,000 when it was at its peak.
The vaccine rollout is slowing around the state, and Eng said the Lynn Tech site will close around the end of June. At that time, vaccines will be available at Lynn Community Health Center and City Hall.
The Lynn Community Health Center partnered with the city’s Department of Public Health to create the Lynn Tech clinic with the goal of being at the forefront of community vaccination efforts.
Mayor Thomas M. McGee told Moulton that this partnership, along with assistance from the Fire Department and National Guard, has allowed the clinic to successfully distribute vaccines to thousands of residents.
Moulton praised the partnership and the efforts of everyone involved in making the vaccination site successful.
“Thank you all for everything you’ve been doing,” Moulton said.
Moulton asked Gove what the next steps are for the vaccination site, to which she responded that efforts are beginning to ramp down, and the location is preparing to close. In addition to vaccines at LCHC and City Hall, Gove said they plan to increase the use of mobile vaccinations, which have been distributed at churches, elder care facilities and certain businesses.
Gove said the LCHC is now focusing on doing outreach in neighborhoods, door knocking and making phone calls to encourage those who haven’t been vaccinated to do so. At present, more than half of the city’s population is fully vaccinated.
Gove also informed Moulton of the existing relationship LCHC has with its patients, which she said has been a huge boon in scheduling hundreds of appointments. Gove added that many patients already trust the staff, which makes them more willing to schedule a vaccination appointment.
For vaccinating the city at large, Gove told Moulton community partnerships have been key.
Eng and Gove said there is still hesitancy, but that they have been putting in the effort to ensure people of the vaccine’s safety. They have also been following up — via phone call — with those who have not shown up for their second dose.
“The majority of people come back and if they don’t when they’re supposed to, we’ll call them and they’ll come back six to eight weeks after their first dose,” Eng said.
Now that a majority of the population is vaccinated, there are more walk-in appointments available and people can choose which vaccines they want.
The Lynn Tech site is offering all three vaccines — Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson — at different times, so people may choose which vaccines they want when they schedule their appointment.
On Thursday when Moulton visited, the clinic distributed Moderna for the first few hours of the day and then switched to Johnson & Johhson.
Eng said they do this because people have preferences, which LHCH is now able to adhere to. Some people are still hesitant about the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, she said, since it was briefly put on hold. Others have requested Pfizer, as it has been approved for 12- to 16-year-olds.
As of next week, the Tech site will be open on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Appointments can be booked online at lchcnet.org.