A Shot of Kindness

When the air starts to get crisp and pumpkins appear on doorsteps, it’s also that time of year to think about guarding against the flu for the coming cold season.  Our family, like so many others, has many stories to tell about our children getting shots.  I could go into detail about bribing our now 22-year-old daughter by telling her we were going to the amusement park after a visit to the clinic twenty years ago.  I remember those intense minutes in the clinic and exactly what the lobby felt like while we exerted our parental strength.

Yet, no memory matches what happened this last week at our local pharmacy.  We have a favorite Rite Aid just minutes from our home.  In a sense, our family has ‘grown up’ with this pharmacy and the wonderful staff over the years.  I have a special place in my heart and stomach for Rite Aid; where else could a kid get a double cone of ice cream for just 10 cents (yes, mint chip plus mocha almond fudge).

With Jeffrey’s autism, having a pharmacy that really knows our family has made all the medication adjustments smooth and assuring over the years.  So when last year was a near disaster trying to get a shot for Jeffrey at our clinic, I thought I might inquire if the pharmacist would be open to giving Jeffrey his shot this year.

I really didn’t know Katie that well, but when I got my shot a few weeks ago, in my gut I knew it was worth asking her and seeing what she thought.  Without a pause she agreed not only to giving him the shot, but also to coming out to the pharmacy waiting area instead of bringing him back into the small sterile inoculation room.  The plan was set in motion for Friday that week.

My husband Jim arrived early on the afternoon of the shot.  He and Katie came up with a plan:  Jeffrey would sit in the blood pressure ‘station’ with his arm in the sleeve; not only would this secure his arm, but he would also be mesmerized by the screen and buttons.

As I went to tell Katie that Jeffrey was ‘ready’, she spontaneously took off her white pharmacy lab coat and quickly came out to the waiting area.  As she administered the shot and a bright red band-aid, Jeffrey mumbled ‘shot’ and that was that.

It was a beautiful moment, celebrated not just by us, but by all the  Rite Aid staff.  Jamie, the pharmacy manager, smiled in awe at Katie’s creativity and skill.  Jeffrey truly brings out the best in people, and he makes the world feel like family.  We are blessed.