PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) -- Just a little pinch and you get a cool bandage and protection from COVID-19. Kids between 5 and 11 can get their vaccines Thursday at clinics opening in Philadelphia.
One is in Germantown at the Waterview Recreation Center at McMahon and Rittenhouse streets, which is hosting the first pediatric vaccine clinic from the city's Department of Public Health from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday. Appointments can be made ahead of time online. Walk-ins are also accepted.
The other clinic is in North Philadelphia at the newly opened Center for Health Equity at 20th Street and Lehigh Avenue, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. for those who registered. It is expanded a bit to include patients between ages 5 and 17 as well as their guardians. As of Thursday morning, the clinic was no longer accepting registrations.
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Dr. Susan Coffin says being able to vaccinate this younger age group is vital. It's not just masking and distancing to keep them safe anymore.
"They had to rely on all of our mitigation strategies," she said. "We want to be able to do more. And we want to be able to ultimately have them return to a more normal life."
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Dana Garnett said she left the Waterview Rec Center clinic feeling relieved.
"We wanted to be able to do our part, not only to keep ourselves safe, but to keep our family, our loved ones, our community safe so we can get past this pandemic."
Garnett took her 11-year-old triplet daughters for their shots.
"They were nervous, initially, going into the building," she said of the girls. "Definitely, once they saw the needles. But that didn’t last very long."
A big reason why, according to one of the girls, Taniya, was that the nurse used a stuffed animal, Tim the bear, to show her where the needle would go.
"To show me that it was good to put it in my skin," the girl said.
Nurse Cydni Walker says Tim was a really useful tool.
"We show them exactly what's gonna happen with the needle, and after we’re gonna put a Band-Aid and offer them some candy and some stickers, and they’re good to go," she said.
Taniya says the shot was just like a pinch. And now she feels pretty good and can’t wait to travel for the holidays.
"It makes me feel safer, so I can go some places and stuff. So I can go to Texas!"
Some kids had a tougher time and cried, but after they were done they were told how brave they were and there were cheers.
Hattie Morin is 6 years old, but she’s more specific if you ask her.
"I'm six and a half," she said.
She was with her sister and her mom at the rec center feeling pretty good, even though she went in feeling nervous.
"At first I was super scared, but then when I was holding Tim the bear, it only felt like a tiny little pinch," she said.
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There were about 75 kids registered, and some walk-ins were accepted as well.
Walker, who started her career at the beginning of the pandemic, said it was a rewarding experience.
"It’s a little interesting to be kind of thrown into the fire. It kind of seems like having the 5- to 11-year-olds, it feels like we’re kind of approaching the end of this whole thing."