Dentists in NYC and their staffs are getting vaccinated?

Health care workers waiting for vaccine at Worth St. site.

 

An Article in the Wall Street Journal highlights the difficulties doctors in private practices, who are not on a hospital staff ,have had in obtaining a vaccine, it has become increasingly possible. While the process involved in scheduling a vaccine can be somewhat serpentine, it is possible to get an appointment, by going to various websites and finding a site that has available appointments. I spoke to colleagues, who pointed me to links for websites that were giving out appointments. Initially, when I tried using the links I found sites that were listed and then when I contacted them I was informed that either they had no vaccine or worse yet they didnt get back to me. NYU Langone was listed on one of the sites and I called the number and left a message but no one returned my call. 

Eventually after talking with my suite mate he said that he was able to get an appointment in one of the Suffolk County sites and I went to the New York State  link he used and was able to make an appointment for after work the next day. Unfortunately I was sent an email later that "confirmed" that I had cancelled my appointment. Further more I was advised if I had any questions or needed help to call a specific number. I called and eventually got through and spoke to someone who said " Yeah, I have heard that from several people who complained of their appointments cancellation and I was advised to try booking another appointment ( of course there were no more appointment at that facility. I asked her to have a supervisor get back to me but no one ever did.

This happened on Wednesday and I was starting to get stressed. I spoke to another neighboring dentist, who gave me a link to a NYC  department of health website and I was able to book an appointment for the next day at 1:15 PM. This time I was successful and got a Moderna  vaccine by going down to a Worth st location. The people their were nice and it was a pleasant experience. 

I am writing this post the next day and so far the only problem I have experienced is a sore arm. I have tried to get my staff to get their vaccinations, but I think they are waiting to see how I do, before getting theirs. I believe this waiting is not the best course of action since there is probably less risk of having a problem from the vaccine as compared to the risk of waiting and possibly becoming infected with the Covid-19 virus. That being said, we all have to make our own decisions and I am not forcing them to get a vaccine, even though I think it is in their best interests. 

I was informed that I should get a follow up vaccine in 30 days ( give or take 4 days) and I was informed that I would receive an email later that would let me know how to schedule this appointment. Clearly I am extremely fortunate to have had the opportunity to get vaccinated and hope that very soon the vaccine will be made available to other high risk group in NY, such as senior citizens, first responders and those with health conditions that put them in a high risk group. 



from Ask Dr. Spindel - http://lspindelnycdds.blogspot.com/2021/01/dentists-in-nyc-and-their-staffs-are.html - http://lspindelnycdds.blogspot.com/

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