Editor's Note:
Christian Ibarra is a Puerto Rican writer and journalist.
He has worked and published his articles in various local and international media such as El Nuevo Día and Univision Noticias, among others.
He is the author of the short story books: "Life at times" and "Windows".
The opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author.
(CNN Spanish) -
On December 11, 2020, my skin crawled when I received a notification on my cell phone that the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the emergency use of the Pfizer vaccine -Biontech against covid-19.
"I can finally hug my parents," I thought.
The emotion, although immense, did not last long.
And it is that, for some time now, in Puerto Rico we carry defeatism as a flag.
And we have our reasons.
It is enough to remember the disastrous actions of two consecutive governors who did not respond effectively to Hurricane Maria in 2017, nor to the 2020 earthquakes in the south of the island, as well as to the pandemic, until now.
In command of the failed response to these events were Ricardo Rosselló and Wanda Vázquez Garced.
That hope of December 11, then, is now clouded with the unsuccessful search for an appointment to vaccinate my parents.
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My father is 83 years old and he is a patient with Alzheimer's.
My mother is 67 and suffers from chronic health conditions.
As soon as the vaccine arrived on the island on December 14, the Government of Puerto Rico had already drawn up a plan to face the pandemic at the hand, this time, of the new governor Pedro Pierluisi.
In the photo: Carlos Ibarra, 83, and
Blanca Delgado, 67.
The plan contemplates distributing the vaccines in several stages, which are broadly as follows: 1A, health professionals, hospital workers and personnel who live and work in long-term care centers;
1B, police, emergency workers, Department of Education employees;
and 1C, people with chronic diseases, respiratory problems, kidney patients and immunocompromised people.
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However, what was not considered at first as an immediate priority in the vaccination phases was people over 65 years of age.
This surprised me very much, since Puerto Rico has, according to the Census Bureau, 679,656 people over 65 years of age.
That's 21.28% of the island's population.
Later, on February 2, Carlos Mellado, the designated Secretary of Health of Puerto Rico announced that during the next 28 days only those over 65 would be vaccinated.
A response to the shortage of doses of the vaccine.
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In Puerto Rico, more than 88,000 confirmed cases of covid-19 had been registered and 1,867 people had died from the disease, according to reports from the Department of Health on February 5.
On an island of nearly 3.2 million people, it is not unusual for us to meet someone close to us who has lost a loved one to the virus.
Far from effectively overcoming the pandemic, fear is latent and those who have died in recent days mean that, like me, many of us do the unspeakable to get a vaccination appointment for our elderly relatives.
A song by the Dominican musician Juan Luis Guerra sums up this search very well.
Because getting a vaccination appointment is like trying to cross the Niagara on a bike.
On January 10, the Government of Puerto Rico decided to give priority in the first phase of vaccination to adults over 65 years of age, with special emphasis on those over 75 years of age.
That same day, the Department of Health published the lists of providers who would be in charge of vaccination.
Of course, I immediately called.
All afternoon I was calling and no one on the other end of the line answered me.
In parallel, I called a pharmacy because the government explained that they too would have a good part of the vaccination process on their shoulders.
To my surprise, I didn't find a human voice on the other side.
Just an automated voice that indicated that there was no information about covid-19 vaccines yet.
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In the following days I have asked for help on Twitter and Facebook.
I have called hospitals, universities, community pharmacies, and independent organizations.
In all places I get the same answer: "Fill out the form and we will contact you."
At this point, I have already filled out the forms with unusual speed, but in no case have they responded with the desired appointment.
Although the Financial Times placed Puerto Rico on February 5 in the 15th position in the world in the number of vaccines administered per inhabitant, that clearly has not been my experience.
At the moment, according to data from the Health Department, more than 339,000 vaccines have been distributed.
The island's health authorities have recognized that more are needed.
While it is true that it is cause for celebration that citizens are vaccinated on a massive scale, in Puerto Rico the process has developed with astonishing disorganization.
It is enough to read the comments of the people in the official government networks to gauge the anxiety, despair and misinformation that prevails in the population.
IMPOSSIBLE that the Department of Health did not know that CEE personnel and other non-priority groups have been vaccinated.
Impossible!
Most of the deaths of our relatives over 65 in these last and coming weeks will be the responsibility of the Government.
- Enery Dorta (@DortaEnery) February 2, 2021
Where do we call or write to meet our old men ?!
🤨
- Don〽️ichael💫 (@don_ichael) February 2, 2021
The health authorities of Puerto Rico recognize the inconveniences and have called on the public to wait their turn
Although I have friends who have been able to vaccinate their parents, this seems to be more of good fortune than of a robust system and structure to carry out the process.
A few weeks ago I was attending a dental office and talking to one of the nurses.
To my surprise, he had not been able to get vaccinated either, despite the fact that health and emergency services personnel are included in the initial vaccination phase.
She, like me, still dream of feeling the embrace of our parents after a year.
Puerto RicoVaccine