Day 1 of the launch of the COVID-19 vaccine in Broward County less than a smooth trip

DAVIE, Fla. – Don’t worry about calling the Florida Department of Health in Broward County to make an appointment if you are eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine – the Department of Health information is that you must make the appointment online.

This is a difficult task, considering that the site went down more often than it worked. Many people said they have been trying for weeks to get an appointment.

[RELATED: Get the details on Broward County locations: Vista View Park, Davie; Tradewinds Park, Coconut Creek, and, on Tuesday, Markham Park, Sunrise. The website address: https://browardcovidvaccine.com/ NOTE: As of 8 p.m. Sunday, the website was still not working. “We sincerely apologize. This site has been taken down for maintenance in order to serve you better. Thank You.”]

On the first day of the vaccination implementation for those over 65, things were not very smooth at Vista View Park, one of two locations that opened on Sunday. The other was the Tradewinds park on Coconut Creek.

Hundreds of people came to Vista View Park and got the vaccine, while others were turned down because they didn’t have an appointment or were caught in the tangle of the site’s accident.

There was a small window on Sunday morning when the site was up and running, but it crashed shortly afterwards, despite the fact that the FDOH sent out a statement saying the site was back up and running.

At Vista View Park, a line of cars stretched across the park and down a side street for most of the day. The COVID-19 vaccination station opened at 8 am and was scheduled to stay open until 4 pm on Sunday.

Jonathan Tabachnikoff, a health professional, was accompanying his 74-year-old mother who had an appointment online.

“The line was just around the corner and it took us an hour just to get to the entrance to find out that there was a computer failure, but if we were okay with staying, we would be welcome and it would take a few more hours,” Tabachnikoff said.

The two struggled to find an appointment for her until an online slot opened this morning.

Others who attended today also hoped for the best after the site to secure seats crashed repeatedly, even during scheduling.

Richard Mure waited in his car and hoped that when he got to the front of the line, he would be able to get a vaccine.

“The site kept crashing, so we tried to go back, but he said, you can’t go back, you already have an appointment. I hope their technology is up to the task and that they are available to find my name there, ”said Mure.

Information from the Florida Department of Health states:

If you have previously registered, you should have received an email confirmation, check your spam or junk folders. For all future appointments, a confirmation email will be sent within 48 hours of registration.

If you are trying to register and find that consultations are not available, check back often as we are increasing the number of vaccination sites for seniors in Broward County in the coming weeks.

Vaccines will be available free of charge, by appointment only. Appointments for drive-thru vaccination sites can be done at https://browardcovidvaccine.com. Appointments cannot be made over the phone at this time.

Individuals who receive the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine will automatically receive an appointment for the second dose 21 days later.

Overall, vaccine implantation here and across the state has been difficult. The head of the department that oversees the program appeared on Sunday’s Local 10 news, “This Week in South Florida” and explained the difficulties.

“Long-term planning is difficult when you only have a 7-day vision for the vaccine to arrive,” said Jared Moskowitz, director of Florida’s Emergency Management Division. “There is a lot of hesitation with suppliers on the second injection, again, because we don’t have a good view of when the second injection is coming and even though the first delivery of the second injection has arrived.”

Moskowitz said his department is monitoring launches at the vaccine site and any problems and will assess needs as the week progresses so that things go smoothly. this is the Pfizer dual vaccine that was distributed.

The coronavirus test site at Holiday Park in Broward County is in the middle of the transition to a vaccine administration site.

According to the city of Fort Lauderdale, it is working with neighboring cities Oakland Park, Pompano Beach and Wilton Manors to establish a COVID-19 vaccination site.

Once installed and functioning, it will be operated by the Florida Department of Health.

(Below is the fact sheet that recipients receive before receiving the vaccination from Pfizer.)