Mara and I went to get her immunized against the H1N1 flu strain. It would've been laughable if it wasn't so scary.
We've been watching the state government sites to see when Mara would be eligible to receive the vaccination and Friday was the day. It was gorgeous out and if we were going to have to stand outside for hours on end, this was the day. Plus, the scheduled times were from 1-4, so only nonworking Moms and Dads would be there, this should cut down on the wait times.
We drove to a small airport nearby where we got in line, a long line. People stretched across the parking lot, around a landscaped area, and up to a line of buses, to a building. We assumed we'd be going in the building.
The line seemed to be moving pretty fast. We would all stand and stand and then WHOOSH we'd walk 50 feet at once. Lo and behold, we were waiting to get ONTO the buses so we could then be shuttled to a medical facility nearby where we would wait in another line to get inside to receive the shots, wait in line again to reboard the buses to then be shuttled back to where we started.

What? Is this the best system?

First off, the entire line was populated by caregivers and their small children. There was nowhere to sit, no bathrooms available for parents or for changing. It was a parking lot, so you couldn't let your children run around or play for fear of cars or the infernal buses hitting them. There wasn't any shelter from the sun (and in the future, the rain/snow). You had to leave your stroller once leaving the first parking lot, which means carrying your child(ren) throughout the second wait period while filling out paperwork. Paperwork that was necessary even if you pre-registered.
It was a huge, huge hassle. And I was so lucky. Mara didn't cry, fuss, or wiggle around at all. She did eat ALL of her snacks, drink ALL of her water and juice, and nursed once during the affair. She was comforted by a spoonful of caramel I brought for her during the injection, but by the end not even the bus excited her anymore. She was exhausted. I was exhausted. Start to finish the immunization took 3 1/2 hours.
I just cannot believe that this is the best option. I just cannot imagine what would happen in the event of a true emergency/disaster that required massive casualties/injured to be treated. Obviously the system can't handle it.
Oh yeah, and we get to go back in 28-30 days to do it again.