New COVID Vaccine Clinic Brings 'Sense Of Hope' To Teaneck

TEANECK, NJ — The Richard Rodda Community Center has repurposed their gyms, turning them from basketball courts to a COVID-19 vaccine clinic.

On Wednesday, pharmacists and nurses from Holy Name Medical Center used the space to administer vaccines to Category 1B patients, estimating that they could vaccinate at least 70 people per hour.

Holy Name officials said the hospital has 1,500 doses of the coronavirus vaccine, up to 300 of which could be administered Wednesday.

Anita Cruz, Director of Cardiovascular Services, was one of the staffers administering vaccines, and has been since before the holiday season.

"It felt like I was giving people a Christmas present," said Cruz, who received the second dose of the vaccine herself last week.

She said since inoculations began there was a new "sense of hope" at the hospital, which has seen the worst of the pandemic in New Jersey.

Many of the patients getting vaccinated Wednesday were first-responders.

Mary Spencer, who works in the records department for the Mahwah Police, said throughout the department many of her colleagues are in support of the vaccine.

"I don't know anyone who's hesitant," she said.

For Spencer, the vaccine offered an opportunity to not only protect herself, but the greater public, and her loved ones.

Protecting others from the coronavirus, which has killed over 2,000 people in Bergen County, was a theme often discussed at the clinic.

Bill Graham, of Harrington Park, said he wanted to get vaccinated in order to protect his family, and believes everyone should be vaccinated.

He also spoke to the effectiveness of the process at the Rodda Center, which he said was surprisingly easy.

Upon arrival, patients walked into a gymnasium where they checked in, were assigned a "vaccinator", received their vaccine and scheduled an appointment for their second dose of the Moderna vaccine.

They were then moved through a connecting door to another gym for their 15-minute observation period.

Here's a look inside:

Ropes were set up in case lines formed, but they didn't for most of Wednesday.

A big reason for that, according to Holy Name officials, is that walk-ins aren't accepted at the clinic. All vaccine appointments must be scheduled.

Though this was the first day vaccines were administered at the Rodda Center, Holy Name staff have already inoculated Category 1B patients, and hope to begin administering more than they did Wednesday, but will need more supply before that becomes a reality.

On Monday, a number of first-responders from departments across Bergen County received the vaccine at the Teaneck hospital, and on Jan. 5 the Teaneck Police Department announced that they'd begun receiving it.

READ MORE: PHOTOS: First Responders Get COVID Vaccine At Teaneck's Holy Name