Vaccine liaison-ing

[Lily&Me]

I talked with a family member yesterday who is 67, has COPD, diabetes and kidney issues, and has not been vaccinated nor has anyone including her PCP reached out to her to get her vaccinated.

She is very high risk, but has slipped thru the cracks of early vaccines while waiting for someone to contact her.

She does not have internet access, receive a newspaper, the senior center and library in her small town have been closed, etc., etc., etc.

With her on the phone, I got into the website for her county health department and was able to sign her up for notification of vaccine clinics in her area using my email and contact information.

I will be able to schedule an appointment for her.

So, just a little Public Service Announcement to perhaps check on friends, family, neighbors, etc., who may be in similar circumstances and may need help to get a vaccine scheduled.

Maggie

[FLCoast]

Thanks Maggie. Great PSA as some do not have access to get scheduled.

I would also add that if you are able to schedule someone, especially for the second shot, that you suggest they have food prepared ahead of time because the side effects of the shot may leave them feeling ill. It would also be good to follow up with phone calls after they get vaccinated to make sure they’re ok.

[Lily&Me]

Those are great ideas, and thanks.

I did warn her of side effects particularly it seems after the second vaccine, as I have first responder and health care professionals in my family who have already received theirs and reported back.

A small price to pay, really, in my opinion.

Maggie

[OTRA15]

Well done Maggie. I was able to segue nighttime sleeplessness into vaccine appt. research a couple of months ago for quite a few older folks. We have all had our second shots, and the “breathing room” is great.

One important factoid emerged about the NYS system: when any existing appointment is changed or cancelled, a new vacancy goes into the database instantly.

BUT

This vacancy may NOT be broadcast on the “front page” about vacancies, which may in fact say something like “no appointments are available.”

If you dig deeper and look at individual vaccination locations, however, that new vacancy WILL often show up as an available appointment slot!

In other words, when searching for an appointment, don’t trust the front page headlines.

Dig deeper.

Travel safe . . . and . . .

[ITSNO60]

Logging onto CVS or Walgreens sites and creating a user account worked for us, by the second day of checking we were able to book appointments and already received our first shots last Friday. My wife got in at CVS and I got in at Walgreens. They were not real close to us but within 30 min which was fine. You use your zip code and they get you scheduled somewhere reasonably close.

[ITSNO60]

Another note, the eligibility, at least for Walgreens in my county, included adults 55+. Also going to the websites very early in the morning is more likely to find you an opening. Just another option, and quite easy at that.

[eubank]

Some communities offer help to seniors in scheduling these, especially where scheduling is largely handled online, as in my state.
Lynn

[Mollysdad]

Here in FL, I decided to use the Publix (grocery) system. I had to try online only, at 7 am. Mon, Wed. Fri. Their system was obviously overwhelmed, because it crashed or they ran out of appointments in 45 minutes. But I stuck with it, and finally got an appointment. They use Moderna. The first shot was a big nothing, a bit of soreness if I thought about it. I get the second shot April 1 (yeah, I know) and I admit I'm concerned as there have been a few horror stories lately.
Gotta do it.

There is no way a senior who is not computer savvy could make the system work. There were three pages of questions, and if you took too long, your appointment got taken and you had to start over.

[Rocinante]

One thing to keep in mind in FL: Some parts of the state have FEMA vaccination sites, and those appear to be walk-up only. My wife got her vaccination there and said they are very organized, efficient and as fast as you could possibly hope for. So, don't discount the FEMA sites that don't take appointments. In some cases, they may be the quickest and easiest way to get a vaccination.

[SYC2Vette]

Just have to say that CVS is indeed excellent. Right on time 3 people in line, and in and out in 20 minutes. Have to be patient and get on early every day to check for openings. I have helped several others sign up through CVS. Others I know went through the drive through at Circuit of The Americas and said it was pretty efficient, but I am not personally a fan of the mass events. Unfortunately they are using outdated census data for Texas so not getting as much vaccine as we should be, but we will get there.