Cajun Dome shot clinic

Saturday was an especially busy day for the team as we put into place a group effort of mass dispensing of immunizations at the Cajun Dome. After the Superdome in New Orleans and the Astrodome in Houston, the Cajun Dome's name pops up as one of the main evacuee shelters for the hurricanes; Lafayette's honor of being on I-10 between these two major cities makes it a main stopping point for visitors traveling between the two points.

The Dome was dauntnting, yet personable. The folks there were very nice and very gracious. With the help of Hennepin County and U of MN mass dispensing experts as telephone consultant planners, we were able to effectively and efficiently immunize many residents. (I wish I could quote a solid number, but it hasn't been released yet. 1800-2000 people would be a solid, random guess.) Most important, we didn't have long lines, nor clamoring violence from people waiting to get immunized.

The team all pitched in well and worked smooth. It was fun to see a multi-disciplinary group of healthcare workers and non-healthcare workers on the same page. Our fearless leader, Dr. Karyn Baum, can be seen above working with a prospective client in the 'health education' and consent phase of the clinic. A myriad of nurses, physicians, psychologists, counselors, clinical ass'ts, med students and even National Guard members (our friend, PFC. Sylvester, interpreted for us at one point during the day, 12-gauge shotgun en tow!) pitched in to aid the effort.

After this exhausting day, teams and vans scattered to enjoy the fruits of their labor with cheerful team building throughout Lafayette. The following day would be a day of rest as week 1 came to a close.