It’s been a mixed bag trying to obtain the COVID vaccine here in British Columbia. Here is a summary of what I went through.

Shot One

Prior to this shot, the communication was pretty bad. Even though the local government had a registration system I tried the alternative to getting it done through a local pharmacy since it would be faster. So, I had to phone around all the local pharmacies to see who would do it, or leave my details on their website with the larger chains. I managed to register successfully with Costco and Rexel near me, however, due to demand and short supply, I didn’t know when, if ever, they would ask me to go in. Eventually, I managed to book an appointment through a local small pharmacy I am familiar with. It was a scabble, to say the least.

The local pharmacy was good, efficient and friendly. After the vaccine though, I was a little sick with a headache, dehydration, dizziness, and so on. Could have been worse since others had suffered more.

Shot Two

After the first shot, the pharmacy didn’t know whether they would be getting the second so it was all left up in the air. Again, the communication from the government wasn’t very good, very much unlike in the UK when most people I knew got the actual date during shot one when they would go back for shot two.

Anyway, out of the blue, the pharmacy called me to go in for shot two. It all went well. Didn’t feel ill afterwards apart from an arm ache for two weeeks. That one was much easier.

Shot Three – Booster

Again, a little bit of confusion with the communication. I understood only seniors and the vulnerable could get the booster 6 months after Shot Two and the government would eventually roll it out to others. However, I saw that friends who were much younger than me, not vulnerable, and hadn’t reached their 6 months yet were managing to get the booster.

So, I called the helpline, and even though 6 months had passed they said I wasn’t eligible due to my age. I didn’t want to argue with them, it wasn’t worth it. The day after I got a text telling me I can book a booster now. I sighed, of course.

I went onto their system to make the booking, however, there was only one location available in the whole area and they didn’t have appointments for 3 weeks. So, I booked it for the new year, the first appointment they had available.

I was very pleased to get it done but it was a bit of a gong show. It was a drive-thru facility for which there was a lineup of cars for about 45 minutes, luckily I got there well in advance of the appointment. The “facility” was not a clinical environment and was a filthy warehouse, which didn’t really put me at ease. Anyway, it was done and staff were organized as much as they could be given the circumstances.

Afterwards, I was sick for three days. The same symptoms as shot one. It was no problem really, I’d rather be queezy than not get the vaccine.

Summary

The disorganization did pain me especially as the complete idiot Boris Johnson appeared to have done a better job in the UK. I hope the process didn’t put people getting the vaccine. At the end of the day, it’s out of the way. Question is, will there be another vaccine/booster?