Fairfax County vs Virginia Hospital Center Covid Vaccine

Three down and one to go. My husband has received both doses of the Moderna vaccine. He was one of the first to get an email notice from our health care provider Virginia Hospital Center. We had to travel to a centralized clinic in Shirlington, but it was definitely worth it. His process was handled entirely through the VHC patient portal, like any other physician visit. The building was a high rise glass tower, managed by the Virginia Hospital Center staff. It was a very smooth process and the second dose was scheduled on the same day we were there for the first dose. After that, the state decided all the vaccines would be centrally distributed to the health department, so VHC wouldn’t be administering them anymore. So I had to sign up on the Fairfax County health department website and get on a waiting list. That was on January 18. About three weeks later I received an “invitation” to make an appointment. In the meantime I had also explored CVS and anywhere else just to get on a list. Hearing that all my Florida high school classmates had already been vaccinated was getting annoying. So last Sunday we drove to the Fairfax County government center building and also went through a seamless process - except a second appointment was not scheduled. I am now in a limbo position of waiting for a second “invitation” to schedule the second shot. Hopefully it will arrive sooner than later. I was so thrilled to finally get my Pfizer vaccine and am looking forward to getting the next one. If nothing else it will feel more comfortable to go to any appointments, knowing things won’t change that much for anything else. We’ve been cooped up for a year now, and are looking forward to some normalcy - whatever that is. 

Fairfax County Covid Vaccines

Finally! On Sunday I had my first covid vaccine, and I was ecstatic about it. My husband just received his second vaccine two days before and was feeling some of the side effects from it - mostly achy muscles and tired. He got his vaccine through the Virginia Hospital Center and was in a different age group. I got on the Fairfax County wait list around January 18, and waited impatiently for the email appointment “invitation” that arrived a couple of weeks after that. Luckily the weather cooperated in spite of the snow, ice and sleet. It would have been disappointing to have the visit cancelled. The entire process from start to finish was seamless in spite of the huge crowd. The worst part was the drive to the Fairfax government center as we had never been there before. But once we were in the parking lot it was unbelievable. The logistics could not have been better thought out. In the parking lot you wait until they notify you via text based on your appointment time, then you sign in, then they contact you when it is time to enter the building. From there you show the text message, sign in, then are guided to the vaccine rooms, get the shot, then guided to the wait area for 15 minutes, then leave. There were so many volunteers to help, assist, guide, smile at, make the experience so very pleasant. Now I need to wait for the second email “invitation” for the second Pfizer dose and then need to schedule again. Hopefully it will go as smoothly as the first one did. After a year of hibernation, it was a psychologically uplifting experience. I feel privileged to have gotten a dose knowing that so many who want it can’t have it yet. It will be so nice when the second dose is done. 

Covid Vaccine Appointment - Finally!

I was getting frustrated and tired of hearing just about everyone I know getting their covid vaccine. It’s the only time I wished I still lived in Florida where all of my high school classmates have already received them. After waiting for what seems to be like a lifetime, the email finally came through today to schedule my appointment for the Covid vaccine. I had registered for the vaccine on January 18 with Fairfax County and have been searching for as many options as possible since then. My husband is going for his second vaccine this week after he was invited to schedule an appointment through our health cate provider. I didn’t get that opportunity. So I scheduled this appointment as soon as I got the email and the times were getting taken quickly. Hopefully the weather will cooperate because it’s supposed to snow just about every day this week. I hate snow and hate it even more now. We have to drive in to Fairfax - about 11 miles away. Let’s just hope everything goes as planned and get this over with once and for all. Getting the vaccine won’t change our way of living but it will give us additional peace of mind - something we haven’t had for about a year.