OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) – After months of people struggling to schedule an appointment for their COVID-19 vaccine, some clinics are making things a lot easier. People were able to just walk right in and get a COVID-19 vaccine at the Sunnyview Expo Center in Oshkosh on Wednesday.
“Our desire to do this was to just reduce barriers to people getting in here, and sometimes getting that vaccine appointment is a barrier,” said Winnebago County Public Health Supervisor Kim Goffard. “Perhaps you’re not very good with the Internet or you’ve been on hold for getting an appointment time, or maybe there are appointment times that just don’t work with your schedule. By offering walk-in times, people can really just come when it works for them.”
Goffard says they’re well-staffed, and even during a busy stretch will be able to get you in and out within about 45 minutes at the longest. Some people who stopped in at the clinic Wednesday morning were impressed.
“Very convenient, helped out a ton. I was able to just let my manager know this morning, ‘Hey there’s this clinic, can I go in?’ He said sure, so I came in and got a shot,” said Maxwell Nail. “Very easy. I mean, I was already getting my shot 5 minutes from the time I walked in the door…I think that’s gonna be a huge game-changer in the vaccinations because one of the big issues is people just finding the time to go and get it. Not having to sign up just means you can come whenever you’re free, which really changes it.”
“The walk-in, boy, they’ve got it nailed down as far as [efficiency] and just very patient-friendly, I guess you’d say,” said Chris Krueger. “You don’t have an appointment that you need to be there at an exact time, you’re able to do it at your leisure. Walking in and out, it’s like a drive-thru.”
Krueger had seen the walk-in clinic advertised, so she figured if she had already driven 40 miles to Oshkosh for other business, she’d stop in to see if she could get the shot.
“It’s one of those things that I’ve put off for a while mainly because everywhere I would need to go to get this vaccine, I would need to travel because we’re very remote where we live,” Krueger explained. “I’m here. I’m done. I didn’t even feel the shot.”
Goffard says if you’re on the fence about getting the vaccine or have serious questions about it, they can help.
“Please come see us and we’ll sit down we’ll talk with you and help you make a well-informed decision,” Goffard said.
The Sunnyview Expo Center clinic doesn’t require an ID, and you don’t need to dig up your insurance card either.
As for the future of walk-in clinics, Goffard thinks they’ll start becoming more common.
“This does seem like a better way to do it now,” Goffard told WTAQ News. “We collaborate with Aurora and UW Oshkosh at the Culver [Family Welcome Center] site, and they’re starting to offer daily walk-ins as well. So we are going to start to see this pop up a little bit more as sort of a best practice.”
The Sunnyview site may continue with walk-ins tomorrow for a first-dose clinic, and the county is re-evaluating the effectiveness of the process for future clinics.
Prevea Health is also now accepting walk-ins for COVID-19 vaccinations at four of its community clinics in Green Bay, Oconto Falls, Chippewa Falls, and the UW-Green Bay Sheboygan campus. You can find the times for those clinics here.
