It was a hectic Thursday at work for Hossein Tehrani.
The man with the gentle appearance is responsible for all vaccination stations in Bergen municipality, and is constantly visible both in the media and in the halls where the syringes are placed to inform and coordinate.
When the media on Thursday could tell that several Norwegian cities began to make a profit from doses, and even gathered people from the street to set the so-called “wet doses” which could not be stored for long, the phone line and email account began to glow.
– There were quite a few inquiries, yes. People said they had seen and read the cases on TV 2, and wondered in particular if they could come and get another dose if there was free capacity, says Tehrani, who throughout the vaccination process has made it his flag case to inform.
– I sat down and used the time to answer everyone politely. I said that what emerged in the report was as we had done so far, but now we are working on a far more systematic solution.
Works really hard with drop-in
TV 2 knows that in some cases people have lined up outside the various vaccination sites in Bergen, hoping to be one of the lucky ones who can get a random wet dose.
Both the head of the vaccination program, Elisabeth Engelsen, and Tehrani say this has been done in some cases to avoid having to throw doses.
We are now working really hard to put in place a drop-in solution where people can register and then be called in for vaccination at very short notice.
– We are very concerned not to create clutter, and not disappoint anyone. At the same time, we are in a pandemic situation, and we do not want an accumulation of people outside the hall. Therefore, a drop-in solution has a high priority, so that everyone will have a fair opportunity to get the vaccine, says Tehrani.
– For those who are wondering if you can use the expected drop-in solution to get dose two earlier, the vaccine manager has a preliminary answer below. Photo: Marit Hommedal
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Can one get dose two earlier?
Oslo early practiced a similar drop-in solution, where people outside the relevant vaccination groups could come and get a dose.
Tehrani can not answer whether Bergen’s solution will be the same, but says they are concerned that the vaccination should be as systematic and controlled as possible.
Today it is the case that when you get dose one in the western village, you get a letter stating that you get to know when you can get dose two in six to eight weeks. In other words, it may take longer before the syringe is inserted.
– If you have received dose one, and it has been at least three weeks, can you then attend this possible drop-in hour and get dose two earlier than planned?
– We prioritize dose one first and foremost, both in connection with vaccination and drop-in. But we do not rule out that someone can get a dose of two if we do not have enough people for vaccination, says Tehrani.
In plain language, this will mean that if you register for a possible drop-in time, those responsible will give priority to calling those who will have a dose of one.
If there are no more of these available, and you are at risk of having to throw a dose, you will prioritize those who may have a dose of two.
Tehrani nevertheless emphasizes that this solution is being worked on, and that no conclusion has been reached on how this will work.
– This is what it looks like in Bergenshallen, where it is vaccinated daily – also during the joint holiday. Photo: Ivar Lid Riise / TV 2
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Request from the vaccine manager
On Thursday, TV 2 could tell about several vaccine leaders who were worried that people chose to prioritize travel during the joint holiday, rather than vaccination time.
In both Bergen and Stavanger, the vaccine leaders were worried, while in Trondheim and Tromsø it was not very dark that the vaccination program might be postponed for a couple of weeks.
In Oslo, vaccination had come so far that the joint holiday was not seen as a problem.
– We have a small concern that someone is waiting. I have a small thought that someone who receives the message thinks that they are going on holiday – albeit in Norway – and that they are waiting until they return, said Engelsen in Bergen.
On Friday, Tehrani says that they have received the latest figures for bookings and vaccine doses in the coming joint holiday week. There are many who have booked an appointment, but still some spare capacity.
– Our encouragement to everyone who has not received dose one, is that they use the available capacity and book an appointment now, says Tehrani.
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