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Heidi Harrison, a creative visionary best known for her work as a Youth Aid Job Coach for Dutchess County BOCES, Assistant in Beacon’s Park and Recreation Department, and Volunteer with Mutual Aid Beacon, has added another specialized skill to her resume: Vaccination Appointment Maker/Whisperer. Word on the street is that she “cracked the code” with finding people appointments, and has been clicking and booking for eligible people ever since. Since Dutchess County’s official location site, and other private sites, are not located in the New York State vaccination appointment site, volunteers like Heidi have been vital to booking people who really need the help, as well as getting the word out about opportunities.

ALBB reached out to Heidi to see if she would consider sharing her secrets, and she agreed! To help you book your vaccination appointment easier and possibly closer to your home, Heidi has divulged in great detail how she does it.

See below for her recipe, and then see double below for a list of links.

ALBB: Heidi: how are you this super sleuther?

I love research! Once a topic is of interest to me, I can’t get enough information about it. This issue happened to be one that peoples’ lives depended on, so once I realized I might be able to help, I started really digging in. I was very happy to finally be able to help others, while still self-isolating myself.

ALBB: Can we all become Super Sleuthing Vaccine Bookers like you? If so, what is your recipe?

I do believe that a lot of people could also become Super Sleuthing Vaccine Bookers, if they wanted to do so. The recipe is basically a desire to help others, a lot of patience, even more persistence, and a dash of OCD helps immensely. The people that would not be able to do this, unfortunately, are the ones that probably need it the most right now.

So many people in our senior population, are going into this battle without the proper training. My Dad for example, is 85 years old, has a flip phone, and has never touched a computer in his life. Even if I bought him a smartphone and computer today, he would not be able to navigate this system, to book himself an appointment. There are so many others like him, including entire groups of people that are disadvantaged, and don’t have access to computers and internet, that likely don’t even know that vaccines are available to them. Who is going to tell them and who is going to help them get appointments? People that are tech savvy and very familiar with computers and smartphones are having great difficulty booking themselves and their family members appointments.

ALBB: Heidi, can you tell us your secrets?

I’d be happy to share my secrets! Basically, I started by doing some research. I typed into Google “tips, tricks, and hints for booking a covid vaccine when they are all booked”

This search resulted in lots and lots of articles. One article was particularly helpful. It was a Wall Street Journal article titled, “Tips To Help Score a Covid 19 Vaccine Appointment At CVS, Rite Aid, Walgreens, and More” That was literally all that I needed for booking on those sites. The more you use them, the more you get to know the best times to find new appointments, and what their quirks might be.

An information form used by VAAT, which is not an official booking service of the County, but is used by many and run by volunteers.

My next step was to join Facebook groups started by others looking to offer the same help. I joined Vaccine Angels, New York/Connecticut Vaccine Hunters & Angels New York / Connecticut Vaccine Hunters and Angels and NY-HV Covid-19 Vaccine Appointment Assistance (NY-HV Covid-19 VAAT) NY-HV Covid-19 Vaccine Appointment Assistance Team (NY-HV Covid-19 VAAT). (The Vaccine Appointment Assistance Team was just featured on Spectrum News, highlighting two volunteers who have helped book 250 appointments so far). I am the Beacon liaison for this group. People can fill out this form if they need help booking.

This last group was formed from the Facebook group Covid19 Dutchess County and Ulster County Resources, which I joined in the beginning of the pandemic.

These groups are filled with people looking to help others, and share information that will make this process less stressful and less frustrating. The volunteers in the group also secure appointments for those needing help. I have specific methods and processes for each individual website, which I learned either by trial and error, or by other people posting to the groups, sharing what worked well for them. Someone even went as far as to make 3 short how-to videos, showing how she books appointments for people on the New York State Site.

This was by far the most helpful post that I was lucky enough to find. It showed step by step, the madness that one must undertake, to book an appointment on that site. It really comes down to using the refresh button and clicking approximately 1 click per second for around 15 minutes. This has been successful each time I have used it. If you type into a search “Am I Eligible” you will find the New York State Site.

You answer a few easy questions, and if you qualify, it takes you to the locate providers section. You can then choose which location you want to try to book an appointment at. They are listed by closest proximity to the zip code you entered earlier. This is where it will usually say No Appointments Available.

Most people would stop there. I learned not to give up that easy. You click the refresh on the browser several times in a row, usually 2-3 minutes until it takes you to another page that will ask you to choose a time. Then you will receive a message saying: “No Time Slots Available.”

Heidi Cracks The Code

ALBB: Wouldn’t you stop there? This is like a riddle in Zelda!

It’s game on, baby! Why would you go any further? Who in their right mind would click the same button that denied them already? I never would have without watching the video I mentioned earlier. The trick here is, clicking the purple button that says NEXT until a time magically appears. It does not happen quickly. My average wait is 15 minutes at one click per second.

When the time slot appears, you have to be quick, because someone might be quicker! I’ve lost a few this way, and I literally wanted to cry. But that’s when you just press on, and keep clicking, clicking, clicking, until another one becomes available. I joked with my doctor at an appointment last week, that there might be a surge of people with carpal tunnel syndrome in the months ahead, from the repetitive clicks.

ALBB: How do you work with the Dutchess County run locations, like JC Penney?

The JC Penny is strictly a County site, which is on a lottery type system. People have to have signed up for it and hope for a call. You cannot self book that site.

I have personally signed up for notifications through the Dutchess County Website, and have not received any, yet I have booked around 26 appointments at various sites. I only found out about the alternate sites by doing my own internet searches.

ALBB: Do you think there should be 1 central booking website for all of the inventory of doses out there?

I agree 100%! There is no central system whatsoever! It’s a patchwork quilt, that was never sewn together...just random squares of fabric, all relating to each other in a big, important, life or death way, but just scattered around on the floor.

ALBB: What about the non-County and non-State locations, like pharmacies and grocery stores? Do you refresh those? If so, how?

The site that has to be refreshed like crazy is the New York State site, the “Am I Eligible” link.

I have been in touch with all of the local pharmacies:

Rite Aid said that they don't have anything in stock as of now, but should have more in the next couple of weeks. I always call.
Beacon Wellness (new pharmacy on Main Street near Rite Aid) is also in that same time frame.
Sun River (formerly HRH Care on Henry Street) has a form that people can fill out online and wait/hope for a call back.
Caremount has sent emails to people who are eligible. I received one for my mom since I have access to her patient portal. It was an email with a link and a self booking system. It stated specifically that the link was not to be shared and would not work for anyone but the recipient.
I checked Drug World in Cold Spring, as I do along with other area pharmacies, CVS, Rite Aid, & Walgreens, every morning, and to my utter shock, I found available appointments! I was able to book 3 people without any sort of insanity. It felt really weird, and I rushed through the registration, even though I probably didn't need to...but my gut reaction to this process is stuck on HURRY UP OR YOU'LL LOST THE SPOT!
Looks like there are new opportunities at the Fishkill Rec Center via The Medicine Shoppe in Fishkill. Click here for registration details.
For the Pop-Up PODS that happen in Dutchess County and Orange County, like the ones that sometimes happen in Beacon and Newburgh, you need to register with Dutchess County, and then they call you when an appointment comes up. Register for Dutchess County here, and Orange County here.

ALBB: What have been your thoughts during this experience?

It shouldn’t be this hard. I understand the need to get this vaccine out as quickly as possible. I would never expect for it to be flawless or without some glitches. But sitting at my computer booking an appointment, feels like playing a slot machine, more than trying to secure a life saving vaccine. 900 clicks and you finally get an appointment feels like hitting the jackpot.

But most people aren’t winning at all. They are feeling hopeless and defeated. With each appointment I make, I am happy for that particular person, and I am grateful for being a part of what is to be the new beginning.