October 2020 by Tru S.
This review is for people trying to decide where to get their flu shot this year (Oct 2020). Dislikes -- The Walgreens tech (Relatively young, chatty, makes jokes) kept putting us off. An hour we sat waiting near the pharmacy window. For a kid, that is torture. At CVS they at least offer to call you when they're ready but not here. He just kept lying and saying, "One sec, one sec." Please: First come, first serve. Anyone bringing a kid for a shot knows you want to spend the least amount of time possible sitting around thinking about what's going to happen. While I was doing my best to entertain her and keep spirits up, another issue the poor kid had to tolerate at this Walgreens was two older ladies about to fight in line because the tech, completely ignoring the line (again, first come first serve!), took a white couple, who had just walked in, before the latina lady who had been there nearly 20 min. I had to turn around and ask them to please stop, because the fighting got THAT bad and there's a nervous kid here anxiously awaiting a needle. I shouldn't have had to do that. Their tech ignored it, even after I brought it to his attention quietly. Likes -- We liked the older man who finally gave us both our vaccinations. He seemed competent, the shot was over within 3 sec, didn't hurt. My child said it helped that he talked while he did it. And she liked that he could work WHILE he talked. Honestly, we should have been in and out of there given the 20 seconds it took administering our shots. Walgreens shouldn't expect any customer, nevermind a child, to sit for an hour anticipating a needle in an unsafe waiting area. Really...Adults throwing slurs at each other? Escalating tensions? With all the family-friendly fun of an abusive household! Not a great first time flu shot memory (for her or me). So, our search for a regular annual flu shot spot is still on! Yes, next year we will roll the dice again and hope it's a more pleasant, respectful, efficient visit at a new location. Since it couldn't be much worse than that one. (The only reason they were a step UP from CVS was that they figured out how to use my child's masshealth ins. whereas the CVS tech from Uxb. said I had to pay $50. So we left.)