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| Temporary Sign to Announce Radio Signal at a Point of Vaccine Dispensing | Adams County, Illinois, utilizes a solar-powered radio station with changeable message sign to inform. |
| Good News Takes to the Air | |
| Radio "Inoculation Stations" inform the incoming at vaccination locations. | |
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QUINCY, IL: Using a designated radio frequency,
Adams County Emergency Management Agency is reaching out
to citizens arriving at the County’s drive-thru vaccine
distribution site.
John Simon, director of Emergency Management and EMS,
has selected AM 1620 as the means to get initial info to
those queueing up in Quincy, Illinois. Simon states that
the use of radio technology frees staff for other tasks
and also ensures that all arrivals receive the same,
consistent, approved instructions. To encourage people
to get the shot, the County wants the experience to be
as efficient as possible. “It’s about the throughput
rate,” says Simon. “This way we can spend less time with
each car and ensure everyone receives the same
information.” Jerrod Welch, Adams County Public
Health Administrator adds, “This station allows my staff
to focus on the individual patients that are getting
their vaccines." This radio methodology has gained traction nationally in recent weeks. One health district in Tennessee plans to run nine different radio signals simultaneously at various points of vaccine distribution (PODs). Simon’s agency utilizes a VoiceStar System that incorporates an integral changeable message sign to direct those in the line to the 1620 frequency. The same methodology is being deployed by agencies in Birmingham, Alabama, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, and Worcester County, Maryland. Other agencies employ radio systems in weatherproof cases (InfOspot and RadioSTAT), which can be transported to a site and deployed, along with quick-erect signage. The InfOspot system is based on a design submitted by Hennepin County, Minnesota, emergency officials. Central Valley Health District in North Dakota was first in line for the initial production model in 2020. Prior to the introduction of COVID vaccines, safety officials utilized the radio systems at virus testing sites. |
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UCHealth Mass Vaccination Clinic at Coors Field
parking lots on January 30-31 The EventCAST radio antenna was positioned on the roof of a Colorado Rockies parking structure overlooking the site. |
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The last week in January, Denver’s Coors Field parking
lots hosted 10,000 drivers who arrived for in-car
vaccination. UCHealth transmitted bilingual
instructions and directions on 1630 KHz from atop the
Colorado Rockies’ parking garage under a special
emergency temporary license obtained by the Denver
Police Department. [Listen to the broadcast.] SCL Health
will replicate the event a mere mile to the northeast at
the National Western Complex just off I-70 on two dates
in February and March. In March, California's Office of Emergency Services, in conjunction with Caltrans, will set up two vaccination stations using EventCAST technology -- one at Oakland on AM 1670 and one in Los Angeles on AM 1680. The English/Spanish presentations give procedural and directional information for arriving motorists at the drive-thru events. Touchstone characteristics of these products are portability and simplicity. Each radio system can be moved as needed and thus become an asset that can be shared with other jurisdictions. The audio program can be controlled via network, by flash drive/USB or by live microphone/override, depending on how the system is optioned. RadioSTAT, EventCAST and VoiceStar products are licensed under FCC Part 90 and have a 3-5 mile radius of coverage. The InfOspot system operates under FCC Part 15 rules and requires no license. It is adept at parking-lot sized coverage – up to 1/2 mile. |
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| Banking on Radio to Help the Hurting | |
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| Radio informs those lined up at the Spokes of Hope food distribution destination in South Carolina. | |
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InfOspot system has also been discovered by
emergency distribution agencies such as Spokes of Hope
in Little River, South Carolina, where locals often line
up for miles to receive food and life-essentials. This
nonprofit was instrumental in providing local assistance
after Hurricane Florence flooded the homes of hundreds
in the vicinity. And churches such as Purpose Life Church in Springfield, Tennessee, have added radio to their distribution operations, as well. Says spokesman Chris Harder, “We posted signs informing people to tune to 1630 AM for instructions about how to register and to return to their vehicles until their number was called. Thanks to the radio transmitter, these were the smoothest running food handouts in the Church’s history.” The Church originally obtained the transmitter to make possible outdoor worship services for people attending in vehicles. |
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| A Food Distribution Operation by Purpose Life Church for Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee | |
| As detailed in previous issues of The Source, since the beginning of the Pandemic, schools, park and recreation departments, cemeteries and event managers have embraced radio technology as well. It’s telling that this medium, which first brought us together one hundred years ago, continues to demonstrate that it is also remarkably good at communicating with us while we are separated. | |
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