[LINK] COVID-19 Vaccination Contradictions Between Federal, ACT & GP Websites

[Tom Worthington]

On 3/5/21 11:31 am, I wrote:

> ... The ACT Government website told me to book 
> online though a system I don't have access to. ...

By the afternoon, the ACT Government website had clearer instructions 
about how to enter the Medicare number to book a COVID-19 shot. But I 
still can't register with the system, let alone book an appointment.

There seems to be a Catch 22 in the ACT system: To book an appointment 
online, you have to be registered in the ACT Heath system. But to 
register in the system, you have to already have been a patient. But how 
do you get to be a patient, if you can't first book an appointment?

As it happens, I have used the ACT Health system, spending overnight in 
the intensive care unit of Canberra Hospital. I didn't have to make an 
appointment, being brought in by ambulance in a delirious state. The 
care was excellent and at no charge. But it is worrying that the ACT 
Health system apparently has lost any record of having treated me. 
https://blog.tomw.net.au/2008/11/canberra-health-system-first-hand.html

Having given up on the ACT Health system, I looked for a GP again. The 
closest I could find was 16 km away. Not as close or convenient as the 
hospital clinic, but at least I was able to book it. The GP's system 
took me through an online consent form and then promoted me to may a 
second appointment the required time.

ACT Heath needs to change its system so that a Medicare card is 
sufficient to register and make a booking. However, much of the 
complexity and confusion is due to the poor design of the vaccine 
rollout by the Federal government, not software.

Also there are those in our region who need vaccine much more than do 
people in Australia. One option would be to retain sufficient stocks to 
complete phase 1, vaccinating the highest priority cases, and then send 
the rest to India, PNG and other countries of the region. When their 
high priority cases were vaccinated, Phase 2 could resume in Australia. 
That would be in the long term interest of all of us.

ps: I am not an epidemiologist, but I have given a talk to them on 
handling a pandemic: 
https://sahanafoundation.org/sahana-meetup-with-tom-worthington-at-virtusa-sri-lanka/


-- 
Tom Worthington http://www.tomw.net.au