By Jackie Hampton,
Publisher,
Juanita Simms-Doty said that as of Jan. 22, all members of her family living in Mississippi, who qualified to get the COVID-19 vaccine, have gotten their first shots and are looking forward to receiving their second shots.
Yet, we have heard many reports from residents of the state that even though they now qualify to get their vaccines, they are not able to do so. Calling the Health Department to register for an appointment or going online to register for an appointment have brought them no results because appointments are booked immediately after announcements are made that specific groups are eligible to receive the shot.
In a phone interview with The Mississippi Link, Simms-Doty said that of her seven family members that have been vaccinated, four siblings had appointments twenty minutes apart on that Friday morning. The four siblings, Georgia Pearls Simms, Casaundra Simms McCullough, Rev. James Simms and Simms-Doty, each were excited to get their shot at the Madison County Health Department in the family’s hometown of Canton, MS.
Early on, when Governor Tate Reeves first announced that individuals 75 years and older could get the vaccine, one sister, Shirley Simms Christian and her husband, Charles Christian, who is a veteran, went to the Jackson Hinds Comprehensive Health Center and the VA to get their vaccines. Another sister, Dr. Kimberly Smash, who is a family medicine physician, was able to get her appointment and vaccine January 14 at Trustmark Park in Rankin County.
Simms-Doty said, “Our appointments were twenty minutes apart. Through a group text, we received updates on when each one was on the way and when each had gotten the vaccine. It was exciting to get vaccinated in our hometown.”
How did it happen that four adult siblings, not living in the same household, were able to get appointments at the same place and very close to the same time? Simms-Doty answered, “As soon as the governor announced that individuals 65 or over could make appointments to get the vaccine, I started trying to register online to make my appointment and my siblings were trying to make their appointments as well but none of us could get through.”
So Simms-Doty, who was determined, hatched a plan.
Governor Reeves in his press conference January 19 said that there were 20,000 available appointments for individuals over 65 and for those with pre-existing conditions. He said there were more to come after that.
After not being able to get online during the day, Doty set her alarm for 12 midnight. She got up and went online again to register for an appointment. This time she was successful. There were 368 people in the que ahead of her but the countdown went quickly and in about ten minutes she had registered and was given an appointment. To Simms-Doty’s surprise, after she received her appointment, she was asked if she wanted to register anyone else and was able to register her three other siblings that lived in the city. Fortunately, she was able to recall their ages, dates of birth, home addresses and other required information.
Simms-Doty said since the pandemic started the family had been having ZOOM meetings where her niece, Dr. Smash, told them to ‘stay-in’ ‘mask-up,’ ‘practice social distancing’ and to follow all of the recommended COVID-19 protocol.
Simms-Doty stated, “We all listened to Dr. Smash and followed all of her instructions. She had been encouraging us on ZOOM to get the vaccine and we followed through.”
Simms-Doty said all of the family members are doing well after taking the vaccine. “The vaccination process was smooth and easy and we are waiting for our second dose. We are encouraging everyone not to give up. Keep going online or calling to make your appointment. Our lives depend on all of us getting vaccinated.” She added, “It should be a family affair.”
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