Poll: Rep Retirement Lodge 204: Covid 19

[leswp1]

Hockey Table. Happy Hockey Table, F Hockey Table, and Sushi (in case of a tie) Hockey Table (and various sports can be substituted).

You forgot the Lodge Quarantine Bar
Good Afternoon Lodge!

Snow in 978 land. Got about 3 inches. 2 inches more than predicted. Still flurrying.

I am not motivated to do what I am supposed to be doing. At all. I want to bake a chocolate cake.

[Scarlet]

Howdy Lodge. Had my physical this morning. Appointment was for 8:00am. Was told to be there by 7:50am. Got up early because I had to clean off my car and was not sure how bad the roads were. Turns out they were fine. Got there by 7:45am. Office door locked, no lights. So, apparently 8:00am is the first appointment. Why aren't they open to get patients signed in, etc.? Ugh. Didn't take me back to the exam room till 8:10, doctor showed up at 8:23. Went fine. We talked about vaccine. She said they were told yesterday they most likely weren't getting any vaccines in the office, at least for a while, they should tell patients to go to the Mass.gov website. I told her my concern was mostly for getting an appointment for my mom.

I get home, had a 10am and an 11am conference call. In between, I go to the mass.gov site an open up the list of locations to get the vaccine. On the fourth location, got a slot! Got my mom booked for next Saturday at a Double Tree hotel in Danvers at 3:00pm. I call her. She asks about her sister. I said I could go back to look but need her insurance info. I go back, only remaining open slots that day are 5:30-6pm. Which means we would have to wait around for a couple of hours. Aunt is OK, my mom starts hemming and hawing, I tell her I'm on the site and have a slot, plus I have another conf call at noon, make a decision. She tells me to wait, they will talk, call her back. I call back, tell her no more slots available that day. Argument about getting her an appointment. I want to reach out to my cousin. I think it should be her responsibility to help her mom, not me. But I'm happy to try and find a slot for her. They both say to not call cousin. This makes me really annoyed. My priority is my mother as she is the one who actually goes out to do stuff. Anyway, Aunt says she'll call her doctor (who is also my mom's doctor). I tell them both the doctor's office will say go to the mass.gov site to book, we don't have any. I don't think she believes me.

In the meantime, I text my brother and SIL to tell them I got mom an appointment. Brother doesn't say "Oh cool! Glad you were able to do that. Thanks!", he says "Mom wants to go with Aunt." He says my mom's doctor told mom on Monday that doctor would call to set them up. I tell him that's not how it's working now. People have to schedule their own. Also, that's not what mom's doctor said. GAH!!! I should have just said "Then you plan it!!!" So very frustrating.

[Ralph Baer]

On the corner of the block where I live. https://twitter.com/SWDCnewsies/stat...00870499672064 : eek :

[leswp1]

Vaccine woes as well. What a CF this all is. Website was not updated. Unable to book, no places anywhere close to Auntie. Meanwhile they finally fix website midday. We (Providers) get an email telling people to visit website. No telephone support. Website is has circular links that are not easy to find, with no way to revert back if you click the wrong one. The news just covered this- it is FUBAR. People told for months to call PCP. Now reverse course- telling people to get on site. The people they want to get on site are all >75. Many are not internet savvy. Absolute embarrassment. THey tried to question the Gov who got snippy and said it was easy and streamlined, what do the want. What they want is a site that is linear, not full of links that do not answer questions and lead to a dead end without a way to achieve the purpose.

Annnnd- also lots of the worst hotspots have NO sites anywhere close to them and no way to get to the sites there are. The rich towns all have sites tho. Hmmm

[Scarlet]

I saw that! Someone asked him if they would streamline the process and he said “How much more streamlined can it get?” I yelled “it could be ONE site! Not the site to click on a link to download a 19 page Word document and you then have to check out 17 places to see which one might have an appointment!” I just spoke with my cousin, told her everything that happened. Sent her the link to the place I booked for my mom. She’s going to book for her mom. First available appointment now not till February 9. That’s actually not too bad.

[Swansong]

Yeah I definitely feel like the state has bungled the rollout. The plans each of us hospitals has had to submit are insanely over-thought out and communication has been crap.

Scarlet - your doctor is correct. They don't have the freezer in that building, so they won't be doing any vaccines until maybe the J&J one is available since it doesn't require any special storage freezing. You'll likely get an email in the next week or so with information and a link to access a web page for signup and location. We just got our corporate level "patient planning and communication" guide, so your doctor has definitely not read it yet. There will be multiple sites run by our company (and MGB is doing the same thing) all over, and you'll be able to choose the one most convenient to you instead of coming all the way into Cambridge.


If only there was some governmental agency that had planned this once for everyone, instead of forcing a million different parallel pathways...

[leswp1]

Yeah I definitely feel like the state has bungled the rollout. The plans each of us hospitals has had to submit are insanely over-thought out and communication has been crap.

Scarlet - your doctor is correct. They don't have the freezer in that building, so they won't be doing any vaccines until maybe the J&J one is available since it doesn't require any special storage freezing. You'll likely get an email in the next week or so with information and a link to access a web page for signup and location. We just got our corporate level "patient planning and communication" guide, so your doctor has definitely not read it yet. There will be multiple sites run by our company (and MGB is doing the same thing) all over, and you'll be able to choose the one most convenient to you instead of coming all the way into Cambridge.


If only there was some governmental agency that had planned this once for everyone, instead of forcing a million different parallel pathways...

AFTER they rolled out this whole thing and made a hash of it the Providers got an email that has just about zero info except a link to the horrendously bad website. No excuse. If you tell people they should be calling their PCP then you change midstream but don't tell the PCPs... Really, a first yr public health student could do better. I realize it is ridiculously complex but there is no excuse for not communicating what you know to the people who need to transmit the message.

[The Rube]

MN re-did their DMV, their health care, etc websites in the last couple years. All failed on the rollout, had to re-do, and now they are shocked that the vaccine website crashed. *sigh*. Don't misinterpret me, I don't plan on getting a vaccine anytime soon, due to age/condition/etc, but this was a surprise? C'mon.....

[MarkEagleUSA]

Good morning to tLodge!

[Ralph Baer]

Good Morning, MEUSA!


Good Morning to the rest of tLodge!

[Scarlet]

Scarlet - your doctor is correct. They don't have the freezer in that building, so they won't be doing any vaccines until maybe the J&J one is available since it doesn't require any special storage freezing. You'll likely get an email in the next week or so with information and a link to access a web page for signup and location. We just got our corporate level "patient planning and communication" guide, so your doctor has definitely not read it yet. There will be multiple sites run by our company (and MGB is doing the same thing) all over, and you'll be able to choose the one most convenient to you instead of coming all the way into Cambridge.

It's funny you say that because my doctor said they cleared out a room and got the special storage freezing and were then told that they weren't getting any.

I'm realizing how lucky I am to have found that one place and got my mom an appointment. I am very surprised at the lack of locations up close to where she (and les) lives. I heard that they were opening up ~20,000 slots between Fenway and Gillette. Which is wonderful but I can't get my aunt, who uses a walker, to one of those locations. My concern now is weather. I hope it doesn't snow!!! Very nervous that it will be inclement weather.

[Swansong]

AFTER they rolled out this whole thing and made a hash of it the Providers got an email that has just about zero info except a link to the horrendously bad website. No excuse. If you tell people they should be calling their PCP then you change midstream but don't tell the PCPs... Really, a first yr public health student could do better. I realize it is ridiculously complex but there is no excuse for not communicating what you know to the people who need to transmit the message.

Yeah, the state has changed a lot. It's really frustrating. BILH/MGB/Circle Health/UMASS/everyone has had to constantly scramble.

[Swansong]

It's funny you say that because my doctor said they cleared out a room and got the special storage freezing and were then told that they weren't getting any.

I'm realizing how lucky I am to have found that one place and got my mom an appointment. I am very surprised at the lack of locations up close to where she (and les) lives. I heard that they were opening up ~20,000 slots between Fenway and Gillette. Which is wonderful but I can't get my aunt, who uses a walker, to one of those locations. My concern now is weather. I hope it doesn't snow!!! Very nervous that it will be inclement weather.

I don't know anything about the Fenway or Gillette sites. But your doctor's office was our planned site until like last week when they moved it to an unused office building down the street on Mass Ave.


Communication and rollout has been a mess, but please rest assured that once we get over ourselves a little bit (there are way too many cooks involved) there will be vaccination sites all over.

[Ralph Baer]

Couldn't get vaccine appointment again.

[Scarlet]

You forgot the Lodge Quarantine Bar

I'm back at Lodge Quarantine Lounge this weekend.

And Ralph - keep trying!!!