A Valley pediatrician has seen a sharp drop in COVID-19 vaccine appointment scheduling, and fears that vaccines will go to waste.
Dr. Sandhya Ravi with Pleasant Pediatrics has helped vaccinate about 30,000 people since late January with a drive-thru vaccine site at four locations. Dr. Ravi said in just the last week, appointment registration has sharply dropped at her clinic.
"We were able to fill up to 300 spots every hour, but now we're getting about 20-30 every hour," said Dr. Ravi. Pleasant Pediatrics is currently allotted thousands of Moderna vaccines a week.
"Last week we got 6,000 but we were only able to use 4,000," she said.
Dr. Ravi believes the decrease in vaccine registrations is twofold: more people getting vaccinated and people not knowing that a pediatrician is giving vaccines to adults.
"Many people do not know that there are private offices, private medical offices that are giving vaccines, moreover a pediatric office that's administering to adults," said Dr. Ravi.
Dr. Ravi said the number of vaccines she receives is determined by Maricopa County.
