As Spokane Arena vaccine site closes, city moves to mobile clinics

June 17, 2021 4:00 PM

Katerina Chryssafis,

Posted: June 17, 2021 4:00 PM

by Katerina Chryssafis

SPOKANE, Wash. — The race to get the people of Spokane vaccinated is far from over, but we’re making strides every day.

Many of those shots were given just down the street from 4 News Now at the Spokane Arena.

The Spokane Regional Health District says as of today, 53% of people in Spokane have had at least their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

As the wide-scale demand for the vaccine wanes, the Spokane Arena served its last day as a mass-vaccination clinic on Thursday.

More than 75,000 vaccine doses have been given at the Arena alone.

While this clinic may be coming to an end, people 4 News Now reached out to say we still have a long way to go.

From the very beginning of this pandemic to where we are today…

“We are learning as we go in a lot of aspects,” said Kelli Hawkins, Spokane Regional Health District. “The goal was to get as many vaccines into as many arms as possible.”

COVID-19 continues to teach us all something new every single day. Hawkins has seen it firsthand working with the health district.

“Technology was a challenge, and making sure that we reach the people who were the most vulnerable and that we were breaking down barriers,” recalled Hawkins.

But with every challenge comes a solution.

“We learned from [the Department of Health] that they are transitioning their state-led mass vaccination effort from the stationary sites to mobile vaccine clinics,” said Hawkins.

That’s why the DOH decided to host their final vaccine clinic today at the Spokane Arena.

“This new phase of vaccine outreach will help the state reach people who have experienced barriers in vaccine access,” said Hawkins.

The closer we are to a high vaccination level, the more crucial access becomes, Hawkins tells us. The more we can open up, the more our lives can get back to normal and our lives get back on track.

“We still have a lot of work to do,” said Hawkins. “We’re still in a pandemic and there’s still a lot of people out there that we hope will choose to get the vaccine soon.”

There are already a few mobile vaccine clinics scheduled around Spokane. For the full list of places you can get your vaccine, visit the SRHD website.