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Elderly woman and granddaughter (symbolic picture): In Germany, people over the age of 80 are entitled to the corona vaccination with the highest priority
Photo: Getty Images
The first vaccine doses were sent to a nursing home in Hamburg-Poppenbüttel in December.
But since then the distribution of the vaccine in the Hanseatic city has been slow - and has led to frustration for many.
Elderly people and people in need of care may need help making appointments.
Here three women report on their attempts to organize appointments for their relatives.
"Once I had tears of joy in my eyes - but then the appointment was already given to someone else"
Birte K. only got a vaccination appointment for her mother because of a lucky coincidence. Before that, she struggled with the overburdened allocation system, which in her opinion overwhelmed older people.
“I actually thought my mother would get a vaccination quickly, or at least easily.
She lives on her own in an apartment, but it is connected to an old people's home.
She was to be vaccinated together with the residents of the home at the end of January, the senior carer had told my mother.
We were very happy because we were very careful because of Corona last year.
When my mother came to visit, we would stay outside on the terrace.
She also only saw her grandchildren from a distance.
We could only be happy for a short time: the appointment was canceled because there was a corona case in the home, and the offer was no longer valid for the tenants of the service apartments.
From then on I called the hotline from eight o'clock in the morning and several times a day to arrange vaccination appointments.
It was always the same, I couldn't get through.
Either the number was completely overloaded or I got to the point where I had to enter our zip code and received the automatic announcement that no vaccination appointments were available.
Once I was put through to the emergency call center, which was embarrassing.
“My mother is fit.
But she couldn't have gone through this process on her own «
At the same time, I tried the website, where I was just as unsuccessful.
You first have to apply for a code, which will be sent to you via SMS.
This is linked to a link that can be used to call up the appointment request directly on the website.
I tried again and again, and the result was usually the message: "There are currently no vaccination appointments available in your region".
Or the page didn't even build.
Then suddenly a happy surprise: The website offered me an appointment on January 24th at 2:30 p.m., I still know that by heart.
When I had entered all of my mother's details, the appointment had already been given to someone else.
That was so frustrating.
This happened to me several times in the following days.
Unfortunately, confirming an appointment on the website does not mean that the appointment is blocked for others.
The repeated senseless input of all data annoyed me very much.
Another time, a friend who was also trying to make an appointment wrote me an SMS at midnight: "There are a lot of new vaccination appointments available!" When I logged in immediately the next morning, all appointments were already taken.
My mother is 81 years old, she is fit and has her own cell phone.
But she couldn't have gone through this process on her own.
In the end we were lucky.
A friend who was mistreating the website at the same time was actually able to book an appointment for my mother.
Today she was finally vaccinated.
On the way home she sent me a WhatsApp message, everything went well, she is fine.
I am so relieved.
When my mother has had her second vaccination in a few weeks, I can finally invite her back to our home - without any queasiness. "
"At some point you get tired and give up"
Heike Meierkord, 54, tries to organize vaccination appointments for her parents with her brother. It is particularly important to her that both are vaccinated together. But so far it seems hopeless to get a vaccination for just one of them.
My mother is 85 and has dementia, my father is 86 with heart defects and asthma.
Both urgently need a vaccination against Corona.
When my parents received a letter from the Hamburg health department, I was really happy. I was so naive to think: "There are now the dates in there." But puff cake.
There was only a letter in which it was about where they could seek a vaccination appointment.
I called the recommended number, 116117. There a very nice woman told me that there was no new vaccine at the moment and therefore no appointments could be made.
She couldn't tell me when that would be possible again.
I also tried it online again and again without success.
My brother also tried it in parallel.
At some point you get tired and give up.
"I still haven't got a vaccination appointment for my parents."
Heike Meierkord
My parents live in a house with a maid.
You hardly ever go outside, but the nursing staff comes every day.
I think the risk of infection is rather low, but of course something could be brought in via the carers.
That worries me.
I myself am very careful when I visit my parents.
I haven't seen her for a long time because I live in Berlin and she in Hamburg.
It's only worth visiting overnight, but I don't want to stay with them because of the risk of infection.
And all hotels are currently closed.
Last summer I stayed with a friend and her family more often, but I don't dare to do that anymore because of the high number of infections at the moment.
When I see my parents, we go for a walk outside.
Winter weather doesn't necessarily make this any easier.
To this day, I haven't had a vaccination appointment for my parents.
I don't understand why it wasn't turned the other way around: Everyone over 80 gets an appointment.
If he cannot perceive it, he must let us know and postpone it.
That would have made it so much easier for everyone.
With the current procedure, old people are completely overwhelmed.
"At some point I felt ripped off in good German."
Aenne K. says she got her stubbornness from her mother. She now knows the direct dialing numbers of the Corona hotline by heart - and finally managed to get a vaccination appointment with luck.
“The pandemic has been a difficult time for my parents.
My father is 86 and lives in the home, he has severe dementia.
My mother is two years younger and still very independent, she lives alone.
If she wants to visit him, strict conditions apply.
At the moment she has to do a quick test before every visit, usually she has to organize it herself.
She is allowed to see my father three days a week for a total of three hours.
That is also why it was very important to me that she was vaccinated as quickly as possible.
Maybe then she can go back to the home more often and we could visit her again more easily.
I notice that my mother is slowly getting tired because of all the Corona requirements and restrictions and is no longer interested.
My mother is very tech-savvy and is not afraid of her smartphone.
We tried to get an appointment for her together.
She called the hotline and I tried it online.
But it didn't work out - all appointments were always already taken.
At some point I felt ripped off in good German.
I wanted to know who is responsible for making these appointments.
So I called the hotline again.
The number still follows me in my sleep, 116 117 and then one for a question about Corona and the two for a vaccination appointment.
I kept typing that in until I was finally on hold.
"My mother had meanwhile given up, she said: 'Then I won't be vaccinated for the time being.'"
Aenne K.
When someone answered it, they only said that they were very sorry, but that appointments would not be made until 2 p.m.
When I called again at 2 p.m., all appointments were already taken.
I asked to be told how to make appointments.
But the woman on the phone just told me that it was not their responsibility.
But the social authority.
So I called the social services department.
There it was said that one was not responsible.
The Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians would activate the appointments.
I called there too and asked my questions, but in the end everyone just blamed the other.
No one had an explanation for me or was ready to take responsibility.
I find that irresponsible, because it is played with people's willingness to vaccinate.
My mother had meanwhile given up, she said: "Then I won't be vaccinated for the time being." But I didn't want to give up.
I got my stubbornness from her.
By chance one night I called up the online tendering site again.
Lo and behold: Apparently a lot of appointments had just been activated.
I do not know why.
But I got an appointment for my mother.
Hopefully she will finally be vaccinated next week. "
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