Feb 18, 2021, Blue Ridge Health District Statement

Yesterday, February 17, 2021, we hosted a COVID-19 vaccination clinic at our Kmart Vaccination Site on Hydraulic Road in Charlottesville, VA. We acknowledge that the clinic did not go as planned.

This clinic was organized with short notice. There was a supply chain complication that led to Pfizer vaccines defrosting and needing to be administered before the impending snow storm.

The clinic was intended for 400 hundred individuals ages 65+ that live in Albemarle County, certain essential workers, and those who were on Saturday’s waitlist for a vaccine clinic for communities of color. Individuals were invited late Tuesday, February 16, 2021, to receive a first dose of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine the following day. Individuals were identified through BRHD’s survey of intent, in order of submission, and were invited by an email that included a PrepMod link. PrepMod is the new registration system replacing VAMS, as directed by VDH. Individuals from the waitlist for Saturday’s clinic for communities of color did not receive the PrepMod link because they were pre-registered by community volunteers.

We faced many challenges yesterday. The PrepMod link for scheduling appointments was widely shared throughout the community, despite our request not to share the link. Thus, there was an overwhelming number of people not invited to the clinic who scheduled an appointment, leading to a limited amount of appointments for those who were actually invited. Many of the individuals who were invited to the clinic were then unable to schedule an appointment and arrived on-site anyways expecting a vaccine. This led to more people onsite than the supply of vaccine available. This resulted in extremely long lines, extended wait times, and traffic problems. This also meant we had to turn people away who wanted a COVID-19 vaccine.

We apologize for the stress and inconvenience this may have caused. BRHD’s leadership team participated in a two-hour mediated After Action Review (AAR) meeting this afternoon to discuss yesterday’s clinic, how to avoid repeating mistakes, and how to improve our operations moving forward. The AAR was facilitated by Emily Pelliccia, City of Charlottesville COVID-19 Incident Management Team (IMT) Incident Commander.

We recognize that PrepMod is a helpful tool for scheduling appointments but its link-sharing functionality is highly flawed. Governor Northam acknowledged this during yesterday’s press conference and has asked that the shareable link problem.

Nevertheless, we are proud to have vaccinated 1,500 people yesterday with zero doses going to waste. Of the 1,500, 210 represent individuals who are now fully vaccinated. We are proud and thankful for our tireless staff who successfully administered COVID-19 vaccines for 14 hours on Wednesday.

We are grateful to our community partners who assisted with yesterday’s clinic, including Jackie Martin with Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital and her incredible team of staff and volunteers, the great team of UVA Health vaccinators, MRC and CERT volunteers, Charlottesville Police Department, City of Charlottesville’s Office of Communications, Charlottesville-UVA-Albemarle Emergency Communications Center, Martha Jefferson Hospital Foundation, Red Light Management, and Skyline Tent Company.

We appreciate our community’s patience as we continually improve our vaccine distribution process and work to serve all in the District who wish to be vaccinated.

Thank you,

Blue Ridge Health District