VACCINATION: What the Senior Center of West Seattle hopes to do

| Coronavirus | West Seattle news

Even though they’ve been prioritized for several weeks, more than 2 in 3 people 75+ in our county have yet to get vaccinated. Both availability and accessibility continue to be challenges for many who are eligible. It’s particularly challenging here in West Seattle, where no general-availability sites are available yet, neither government nor private. City Councilmember Lisa Herbold says the mayor’s office has committed to a site in West Seattle – when vaccine is available, and no one knows how long that’ll be. So what else is in the works? With so many seniors still waiting, we asked Senior Center of West Seattle executive director Amy Lee Derenthal what her organization is working on. First, SC-WS is trying to help members navigate the current challenges, she explained via email:

Our social workers are reporting a number of significant barriers for many seniors to schedule their vaccination, including:

– Many don’t have Internet access
– Many don’t have a computer
– Some have low vision and can’t read the busy web pages
– Some have limited experience signing up for things online, for example through a ‘MyChart’ program
– Many don’t text or know how to receive text alerts
– Many don’t have an email address
– And, many don’t have a family member nearby who can help them navigate these challenges

These barriers are in addition to trying to make sense of the disjointed process and lack of West Seattle locations available to get vaccinated. The Senior Center staff team is working hard to help as many of our 800 members as possible with technology issues, navigating scheduling and figuring out transportation to appointments. So our current main focus is to reach out to our electeds to help us get these seniors prioritized and an easy way for our Social Workers to get people signed up and to their vaccine appointments.

Second, Derenthal told us, she has been working to see if the Senior Center could serve as a mass-vaccination site, “possibly in conjunction with the Junction Association parking lot” right behind it. Public Health Seattle-King County replied to her offer, saying, in part, that “Additional high volume sites are being planned and senior centers will be considered as potential pop-up sites,” so they’ll add the West Seattle center to the list of possibilities. Otherwise, though, the Public Health reply recommended the state’s vaccine-location website … which to date remains completely devoid of West Seattle providers.

Concerned citizen February 5, 2021 (5:18 pm)

Thank you Senior Center for pointing out the barriers our senior citizens are facing in trying to get vaccinated. I hope someday soon there will be a mass vaccination event in WS for our seniors.

Sheila G February 5, 2021 (5:56 pm)

Yes! It is unthinkable to me that there is NO vaccination site here on our access-challenged peninsula. I have written the Governor’s office and Councilmember Herbold’s office about the drought of local options. I must say also that I am very disappointed in the non-response by Swedish. Getting emails from them that essentially say they have nothing for their clients is not helpful. Bottom line: thank you West Seattle Blog for this post. And God bless the Senior Center for their advocacy in this issue.

Anne February 5, 2021 (6:59 pm)

According to Lisa Herbolds email -2 vaccination sites are opening “ on the WS Peninsula “ one in White Center one in South Park- opening something at the Senior Center sure would be nice.
- WSB February 5, 2021 (7:27 pm)
  
  I just read her newest newsletter, which was sent after I published this story. The White Center and South Park mentions are Sea Mar clinic, which we have mentioned here multiple times before, as the only even vaguely nearby sites on the state “vaccine location” website linked again above, and they have been out of vaccine all along. I check every single mentioned source daily so that if something changes we can report it. Looking forward to a time (couple months?) when it’ll be so widely available that it’s not even news any more…
  - jack February 5, 2021 (8:00 pm)
    
    Great Job Lisa, see you at the polls next time.

Rob February 5, 2021 (6:22 pm)

WSB, if they need any kind of volunteer help, maybe with accessing/ navigating on line tools for people, etc, and there is a point of contact who is coordinating can you share that? Would love to help where/if I can, maybe gets.some friends in on it as well!

Reality Chick February 5, 2021 (7:29 pm)

Per Rob: Ditto on the offer to help out.

onion February 5, 2021 (9:06 pm)

Being technically savvy is almost irrelevant until greater vaccine supplies are available . My wife and I are 65 and 67, and since we became eligible I haven’t seen a single appointment time, and I’ve looked day after day at vax sites from Tacoma to North Bend to Lynwood. I don’t care if they use a lottery to ensure fairness, but it would be nice to have a single registration portal and when your number comes up you are able to pick a vaccination site relatively close to where you live. Perhaps they’ll figure this out before the next pandemic. For now, it would be great if the state could tap into the technical and management brilliance at Microsoft, Amazon, and other Washington businesses to create and implement a better vaccination infrastructure.

Ken February 5, 2021 (8:05 pm)

I have been eligible for a vaccine for a couple of months. I have given up. I will no longer attempt to navigate web sites and maps designed by the clueless and implemented by drunken gerbils. My partner , who is associated with a Covid research facility just got her second shot. The process was entirely designed by what appears to be a 19 year old interns including: A long line (six feet apart), 3 flights of stairs, QR codes and forms linked to that which are in the same font as the instruction manual on LED Christmas lights. To be filled out after three sets of forms requiring the identical info.I can’t help but associate this process with the decision making that somehow require handicapped spaces at hospitals to be no less than a quarter mile from the check-in desk. But that’s just me. I don’t wait in line for movies or restaurants either.

CAM February 5, 2021 (11:36 pm)

Ken, your frustration is appreciated but zero people have been eligible for any covid vaccine for a “couple of months.” The eligibility criteria only changed maybe 2 to 3 weeks ago. The current system is disorganized and difficult to navigate but the vaccines weren’t approved by the FDA for use until mid-December and if you were in the first group to be eligible you got it at work.
- Ken February 6, 2021 (3:58 pm)
  
  Over 65 with lung cancer and diabetes and other auto-immune issues, living in a multi generational household. I don’t have a workplace. I am content to wait till summer to use my wheelchair but some who are much older, without smartphones or the ability to see tiny text websites are going to be screwed by the mindset that is in place currently in this state.

J February 5, 2021 (8:29 pm)

Multi-Care has given over 12 thousand 2nd doses. West Seattle in the 75 PLUS PEOPLE RANGE has only 1 in 3 first dose given rate!!!?? SEATTLE GOV LETS WITH IT!! AND I MEAN NOW!! — I’M 76

BW February 5, 2021 (8:38 pm)

CHI Franciscan in Burien has had some vaccine appointments available – just checked the site and it says to check back on Feb 12 (no new appointments this week due to lack of vaccine supply). Not perfect but the location doesn’t require crossing a bridge.

onion February 5, 2021 (9:13 pm)

BW, earlier the Franciscan site said to check back on Feb 5, which I did numerous times today. I suspect they just updated the web site without having made any additional vaccination appointments available . I can’t fault them if they didn’t receive any additional supplies. At least they’re trying to provide a minimum of communication , which most vaccination providers are not.

Melanie February 5, 2021 (9:18 pm)

Same comment as Rob and Reality Check, I would be interested in volunteering at the Senior Center to assist with sign ups or navigating technology. I am tech savvy and patient and feel like I could be of use in this regard either doing in person or over the phone help.Senior Center, think about it and put out a call if you feel like you could use this kind of help.

anonyme February 6, 2021 (7:20 am)

White Center and South Park are not West Seattle, even if the vaccine was actually available there. A major problem for many seniors is transportation to and from a vaccine site. Seniors are regularly treated like third-class citizens, and this pandemic has made that fact even more painfully clear. The Senior Center should immediately become a vaccination site with senior priority. The distribution of the vaccine has been anything but “equitable”. I suspect that few eligible seniors have been able to get vaccinated in comparison to the relative percentages in the current eligibility categories.

Linda L Sherman February 8, 2021 (1:45 pm)

AMEN. When I checked my closest location was listed as Harborview. Not likely I’d risk COVID by taking 2 buses each way from West Seattle. Twice.

Smittytheclown February 6, 2021 (8:39 am)

Man, seems like great progress that 30% of the demographic that represents 80% of deaths (65+) have received at least one shot. Every relative of mine over 65 has received theirs. The case curve is in a free fall, and mostly NOT due to vaccinations yet. Once Johnson and Johnson single shot is introduced we should top 2M/day as a nation. Maybe more. Independence Day will have multiple meanings this year. My only issue is why we didn’t focus on 75+ first. Front line workers – while completely deserving – were not dying or transmitting at high rates due to PPE.

anonyme February 6, 2021 (10:57 am)

Where is the data that states that 30% of those 65 and over have been vaccinated? Also, 30% is not that impressive a percentage, even if accurate. I’m glad that all of your relatives in that demographic have been vaccinated. I’d like to know their secret and so would a lot of other seniors, as that is the opposite of what I am seeing/hearing reported. In a KUOW interview the other day, I heard it stated that vaccines were being diverted to certain demographics that did not include “boomers”, who were referred to derogatorily.
- Smittytheclown February 6, 2021 (5:20 pm)
anonyme February 7, 2021 (7:29 am)

Smitty, thank you for the documentation. I see you are correct about the percentage. However, I still maintain that these are low percentages given that these groups are entirely in the eligibility pool, while the others are not.
- Looking for the vaccine February 7, 2021 (11:30 am)
  
  Unfortunately, what the graph doesn’t show is that out of the ten areas that King County measures, West Seattle is ranked last for vaccinating those age 75+, and third from last for those age 65+. Data is from same source as above.

KT February 6, 2021 (9:17 am)

More vaccines will be available soon as Biden is invoking the Defense Production Act. Sadly the last admin did not do enough.

Sally sick February 6, 2021 (10:14 am)

I’m holding my breath and not sure how it will pan out, cause so far it’s a flipping mess!!! It’s a joke that people can’t get a virus shot and they need to be using public schools as a place to get the shots. Every person who is going to college to become a nurse or some sort of medical field needs to be trained on how to give the shots and what to do if people have reactions to the shots and start giving shots at many sites. Make more virus shots.
- WSB February 6, 2021 (10:18 am)
  
  Places and people to administer the vaccine qre not the problem right now. Vaccine supply is what’s missing.

anonyme February 6, 2021 (11:59 am)

On a somewhat related topic – I suspect that many seniors may miss out on the current $600 stimulus due to the very barriers listed above. Seniors living independently and solely on social security were excluded from using the IRS non-filer’s tool that expired on Nov. 21. The payment was to be automatic, and yet it appears that this demographic has by and large been required to file tax returns in order to claim the stimulus. I expect that this will create an enormous amount of confusion, delay, and possible loss of benefits, especially for seniors who are not internet savvy and may not be aware of the convoluted workings of the IRS in regard to these payments. The earliest returns are not being accepted by the IRS until Feb. 12, so this requirement also delays receipt of any payment (given the absence of further red tape) until well into March. It would be helpful if those working with and advocating for seniors would also keep this issue in mind, as well as the discrepancies in vaccine distribution.

Arlene Carter February 6, 2021 (1:46 pm)

I am one of the fortunate few who got through on the phone in the days following opening up the over 70 tier. I am grateful for my good luck but frustrated that my peers aren’t able to get through the current loggerhead. I saw on the news that Safeway was giving shots at the Central Area Senior Ctr and allowing people to sign up on site. Has someone reached out to Safeway to see if that could be done in West Seattle also?

Sue L. February 6, 2021 (3:01 pm)

Lisa Herbold is a great advocate for West Seattle seniors. I know because her office has helped 105+ low-income seniors and/or disabled people in our building to fight an originally planned renovation in January. The Senior Center of West Seattle has been awesome as well. I’m super grateful to both, as well as others.

clairdesol February 6, 2021 (4:53 pm)

77+ and still waiting. We need a centralized system for signing up/wait listing. You go to a single internet site or make a single phone call, you’re put on a list, and then notified when an appointment is available near you. Why is this so difficult?I don’t mind waiting till the supply is there, but how do I know? This scramble is going to continue until someone figures this out.