Windsor Rotary Launches COVID Vaccine Access Project

windsor rotary covid vaccinre access project your shot windsor

Introduction

The Corona virus pandemic is the most significant health-threatening event to face the world in our entire lifetimes.

Click here to see details on the  Fundraiser.

Rotary Club of Windsor is launching the “YOUR SHOT” COVID Vaccine Access Project to provide vaccine and transportation for vaccinations of seniors and at-risk people in Windsor (California) who have difficulty making their own arrangements.

While vaccines are now becoming available, supplies are currently limited and there is fierce competition to get appointments to actually receive the vaccine.  Often, the oldest and most-health compromised individuals are least likely to be successful in negotiating the online registration process.

The Problem

The barriers faced by seniors in applying for appointments to be vaccinated include the availability of computers, internet access and/or the skills necessary to complete the application process, physical and mental health limitations, and the ability to get to a vaccination site. The Town of Windsor includes numerous senior residents who are experiencing the impact of these barriers.

The Proposal

Helping seniors get vaccinated.

The Rotary Club of Windsor is launching a Covid Vaccination Access Project for the purpose of removing barriers and obtaining vaccine appointments for individuals who are not capable of doing so themselves.

Defining the Local Need

Within the Town of Windsor and extending into the area along Old Redwood Highway north of Airport Blvd., there are a total of six (6) mobile home parks (predominantly occupied by seniors) and two (2) senior living apartment complexes which together total nearly 1,000 units. Estimating double occupancy for about 40% of these units, these facilities could represent as many as about 1,400 individuals.  Contact with the managers of these facilities reveals that the residents are, in fact, encountering the barriers described above. Initial conversations indicate a strong interest in finding appointment scheduling assistance for the residents.

Identifying the Steps Encompassed by the Project

  • Rotary will quantify the scope of work for this project: Determine (based on the experience of others) the amount of time necessary for a single Processor to perform outreach, complete an online application form and schedule an appointment for a single “Client”. Assign a dollar value for the time required to assist a single Client and extrapolate the calculation to determine potential costs and ultimately to define the commitment that Rotary is willing to make for this project.
  • Rotary will identify and negotiate with a public agency (i.e., Town of Windsor, County of Sonoma) or a medical association to provide the Processors to do the hands-on registration work. That agency or association will be Rotary’s partner for this project, and will enter into an agreement by which Rotary would underwrite the specific cost for one or more Processors over a specific period of time.  All Processors will work for Rotary’s partnering public agency or medical association, not Rotary. Rotary would expect to closely monitor the results produced by the Processors as measured by the number of Clients registered for vaccinations.
  • Rotary will work with the County Health Department to arrange locations for specific clinics (such as club houses or community rooms) within the mobile home parks and senior apartment complexes so that groups of (say) 100 or more individuals can be vaccinated on specific dates.
  • Rotary will perform outreach at each mobile home park and senior apartment complex to obtain sign-ups for all the residents interested in receiving vaccination registration assistance. That list will be provided to the Processors.
  • Rotary will coordinate with the County Health Department to arrange for specific Windsor vaccination clinics, and relevant information regarding the dates and locations of the clinics will be passed on to the Processors.
  • Processors will be responsible for providing follow-up to all Clients regarding the date, time and location of their second vaccination appointments.