Woodward Middle School is going to look a little different this weekend, March 6-7. No, the school won't be full of kids. No, the Rotarians won't be operating a giant auction and rummage sale. Instead, the school will be the site of a high-throughput COVID-19 vaccine clinic, serving 1,170 eligible people with first doses of the Pfizer vaccine.The clinic is being run by Bainbridge Prepares and its partners: the City of Bainbridge Island, the Bainbridge Island Fire Department, and Bainbridge Island Community Pharmacy (BICP). This highly organized cooperation of emergency preparedness professionals and volunteers makes up the Bainbridge Island COVID Response Team (BICRT).BICRT is setting up the Woodward campus to accommodate the throngs of people already registered to get their vaccines. An army of volunteers will control traffic, greet people, verify reservation status, provide assistance with mobility needs, check people in, administer the vaccine, keep the volunteer nurses and doctors supplied with vaccine, input data, and monitor people after being vaccinated. The clinic itself will be organized under the roof of the ball courts behind the school so that everyone will be protected in the event of rain.Five lanes of pedestrian traffic will keep the process moving. Nine vaccinators can work at a time to administer the shots. Thirty-five chairs set up six feet apart will give people places to sit for 15-30 minutes after being vaccinated so they can be monitored for post-vaccine reactions.The BICRT partnership has been working closely with additional partners as well to make its vaccine clinics possible: The Senior Community Center and Island Volunteer Caregivers have helped community seniors register for appointments, the Senior Center and the Bainbridge Island School District have provided space, Virginia Mason Franciscan Health has provided staff and other resources, and the Rotary Club has provided additional resources and assistance.COBI's Emergency Management Coordinator Anne LeSage reported in a team meeting last night that Bainbridge Prepares emergency response volunteers clocked 3,667 hours last year. That corps of volunteers—consisting of medical professionals, people certified in Wilderness First Response or Community Emergency Response Training, mental health professionals and certified volunteers, foreign language interpreters, members of an emergency flotilla, animal care professionals and volunteers, and so on—is now more than 500 strong. Just this year alone, 170 new people have signed up, undergone a background check, and received their credentials.BICRT has yet to waste a single vaccine dose—every single dose provided to BICP has been administered!More doses are likely coming next week. Register for Nixle alerts to find out when vaccines are available:

• Text 98110 to 888777.
• Sign up at Nixle.com.

Image courtesy of BISD.