About 500 receive flu shots at center

Costa Mesa Senior Center provides free injections Tuesday.While waiting in line for flu shots, patients tend to have simple demands: Provide a pleasant environment and cycle them through quickly.

Costa Mesa resident Inez DePaul said Tuesday’s flu shot clinic at the Costa Mesa Senior Center met both of those criteria.

“It was one, two, three, in and out,” DePaul said moments after receiving her vaccination. “I walked in the door ,and was being attended to in seconds.”

DePaul’s experience was common for the about 500 people who received flu shots at the center’s clinic, timed to coincide with its annual health fair.

There was the usual pre-8 a.m. rush of patients. Small buses dropped off sizable groups at the center, creating momentary backups.

But for the most part, center employees and volunteers described the crowd as “steady.”

“It hasn’t been overwhelming,” said Laraine Crutchley, a Costa Mesa Senior Center administrative assistant. “It hasn’t been incredibly busy this year. Everyone is walking out saying we have a good system. I’d say it’s running a lot smoother than last year. “

Natural comparisons were drawn between this clinic and last year’s, which was held against the backdrop of a national flu shot shortage.

A year ago, police were called to the Costa Mesa Senior Center for crowd control. The vaccine shortage caused some to worry that the center would run out of supply. Program director Darryl Kim said the center secured 800 doses of vaccine last fall, the same number as this year.

The main difference: The center charged patients last year because it had to pay for its allotment of serum. Shots were free this year because the county provided the vaccines.

There were no signs of police on Tuesday, and Huntington Beach resident Audrey Prusa said the makeshift medical room was less packed and more organized this year. Senior Center Executive Director Aviva Goelman said she was pleased with the atmosphere inside the flu-shot room.

Kim said the center was ready to handle about 100 patients per hour, but it didn’t see that many people. As of 2 p.m., about 300 doses remained. Some were scheduled to be taken to people who were unable to leave their homes.

Kim said the supply could remain through the month, and that those interested in getting a vaccination can still contact the center to receive shots when nurses are available.

Nursing students from Golden West College and Cal State Long Beach were on hand Tuesday to give patients their shots.

Guests were given numbers and provided with an estimate of how long they would have to wait.

“We give people an idea of what to expect,” Kim said. “When there’s a lack of information, people start getting irritable.”

The center offers flu shots to those who fall into the “high-risk” category determined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Those primarily include people over 65, infants, those with chronic illness and medical professionals who come in close contact with patients.

For more flu shot information, call (949) 645-2356 and dial 0.

* ELIA POWERS is the enterprise and general assignment reporter. He may be reached at (714) 966-4623 or by e-mail at [email protected].

20051116iq0vm2knCOURTENAY NEARBURG / DAILY PILOT(LA)Costa Mesa resident Bill Flynn gets his flu shot from Zack Kouyoumjian at the Costa Mesa Senior Center.