Frustration mounts for some trying to book COVID second dose appointments

It has been a frustrating few days for some people across Saskatchewan, particularly seniors who are now eligible to get their second COVID-19 vaccine appointments but are having trouble booking them.

A woman from Regina named Lynn says her 80-year-old mother became eligible for her second dose on Monday. She tried booking an appointment for the last three days, but couldn’t find one anywhere near the city. The closest bookings were in North Battleford or Turtleford, several hours away.

“We tried to get on some waiting lists before that and just scanned the websites,” Lynn said. “(We) didn’t seem to be able to get into a queue.

“I tried phoning some pharmacies. Some weren’t taking appointments at the time (and) some were waiting for information on the vaccine supply that they were getting, so it seems like it was rolled out without much planning or support.”

She stood in line at a local drugstore on Monday for 40 minutes with what appeared to be dozens of people ahead of her in line, and tweeted about her experience.

Lynn ultimately decided to take her mother to the Regina drive-thru Wednesday afternoon, but she says many people don’t have family or friends to take them to get their shots.

“Not everybody has that option, especially someone in my mom’s age category … A lot of seniors don’t have that option. You know they don’t have the computer savvy to go on and sign up for some of these websites and manage emails and text messages and things like that. It’s frustrating,” she said.

She wishes there was a centralized booking system — or at least links provided by the Saskatchewan Health Authority directing people to pharmacy websites.

“To me, it could have been done so much better … and the second doses seem to be much more problematic,” Lynn said.

Lynn, who’s 44, will also be trying to get her second dose as well in the next few weeks. She received the AstraZeneca vaccine, but she’s left wondering when her second shot will happen.

“I’m very concerned what that’s going to look like,” she said. “I’ve got some questions and concerns moving forward.”

And while Lynn wants things to get back to normal, it’s not happening as smoothly as she and her mother had hoped.

“There’s this roadmap, but it’s hit a few potholes, I think,” she said.