Private hospitals create help-desks to register senior citizens

Co-Win 2 technicalities and glitches pose challenge to the aged keen to enroll for jabs

Recipients of the Covid-19 vaccine at AMRI Hospitals Dhakuria on Monday: Pradip Sanyal

Sanjay Mandal   |   TT   |   Calcutta   |    02.03.21 : Private hospitals that started giving Covid jabs to people above 59 and those above 45 with comorbidities on Monday created help-desks so the elderly are spared the hassle of online registration.

Others who plan to start vaccinating the general public from Tuesday said they, too, had set up similar help-desks where hospital employees could help senior citizens register for the doses through the Co-Win 2 app.

A person can receive a Covid-19 vaccine only after registering through Co-Win 2.

On Monday, hundreds of elderly people were unable to register because of glitches in the app or were unable to go through the technicalities. They either queued up at private hospitals or called health-care units seeking assistance.

The health ministry has made it mandatory for people to register with the Co-Win 2 for Covid-19 vaccine doses. The chief executive of a private hospital in Calcutta said the rigidity did cause harassment for many. They had apprehended such hassles and so decided to set up help-desks. 

Alipore resident Shankar Poddar, 68, and his wife Sarita, 61, wanted to take the doses on the first day of the vaccination of the general public. “We are not tech savvy and so asked our son to do the registration for us. He tried but the app was not working,” said Poddar, a businessman. The elderly couple went to Belle Vue Clinic in the morning. 

“We met hospital officials. They said they would get us registered and administer the doses if slots were available,” Poddar said.

The couple waited till afternoon and finally around 4, personnel at the hospital’s help-desk got them registered through the Co-Win 2 app. They got their doses around 4.30pm.

The picture of a Covid vaccine recipient clicked at a photo booth installed at AMRI Hospitals Dhakuria on Monday: Pradip Sanyal

At Belle Vue, 50 persons were administered the doses on Monday. Of them, 11 had walked in without prior registration, said officials.

“We have nine laptops dedicated to helping people get themselves registered. It is done on a first-come-first-served basis,” said Pradip Tondon, CEO, Belle Vue Clinic.

At Medica Superspecialty Hospital, 150 people from the general public were administered Covid shots. Of them, more than 100 went to the hospital for spot registration, said officials.

Six employees were posted at the registration help-desk, while three to four others were moving around, helping people fill in the forms. “Because of frequent glitches in the Co-Win 2 portal, it was taking 20 to 25 minutes on an average for a registration,” said an official of Medica.  

The hospital was flooded with calls from elderly people and their relatives, seeking help to get registered.

Medica plans to vaccinate 500 people on Tuesday. Till late on Monday evening, more than 200 got themselves registered through the help-desk, either by visiting the hospital or over the phone.

“We are taking down the contact details of those interested to take a vaccine. We are contacting them, asking for details to get them registered. They are receiving a one-time password which they are sharing with us to get registered,” said the official. After the registration, the recipients were told when they should visit the hospital on Tuesday.

AMRI Hospitals received at least 300 calls from people throughout Monday, who sought to know whether the hospital could help them get registered. Sixty-nine persons were vaccinated at the hospital's Dhakuria unit and 80 at the Mukundapur unit on Monday, said an official.

Around half the recipients opted for spot registration through help-desks.

The RN Tagore International Institute of Cardiac Sciences is scheduled to start giving doses to the general public on Tuesday.

“In order to ensure a seamless online registration on the Co-Win app for senior citizens who are not tech savvy, we have earmarked an exclusive counter on our campus, with a helpline number to assist them in enrolling for the same. This contact number will be disseminated to public vide our website, call centre and all other means of communication…” said R. Venkatesh, director, eastern region, Narayana Health.

Those who got the jab, and the one who ‘missed’

Chetan Shah, 58 ,a diabetic with three coronary artery stents

The businessman had stopped going to his office on Canning Street in March last year. The first time he went to his office since then was on Diwali, “because it was an auspicious occasion”. Since February, he has been going to the office every day but for only three hours.

“I need to visit many places for my business. I could not do that for a year,” said Shah. He said he would start visiting more places only after the 14th day from the second dose.

“I will still wear a mask and maintain distance from others, but I can visit a few more places,” said the resident of Bhowanipore.

Chetan’s wife Mita, 55, a schoolteacher, also got a dose on Monday. She is diabetic and has hypertension. 

Vandana Mohta, 65 and Gyan Prakash Mohta, 70, residents of Alipore

Vandana was trying to log into Co-Win simultaneously from three mobile phones and one laptop from 8.55am on Monday. She did not give in till she could register her and her husband’s names around 9.20am. “I was desperate to get the vaccine on the first day,” she said.

Gyan Prakash has an autoimmune disorder and was hospitalised in February 2020. “He did not step out of home for once through the pandemic. I was scared every time I had to step out,” she said.

The Mohtas had fever in December. “We lived in constant fear for several days, till the Covid tests returned negative. This vaccine will at least allow me to go out more often for some essential work that I have been delaying. It will also give him some protection”, Vandana said.

Shivashish Paul, 62, a chartered accountant

Paul had been trying to log into Co-Win intermittently since Sunday light. He could log in and register himself for vaccination at 9.30am on Monday. But Paul, like many others, had first downloaded the Co-Win app from Google Playstore.

“The app does not work at all. While I was trying to register through the app, an acquaintance sent me the link of the Co-Win portal. I could finally register myself from here,” said Paul.

The Golpark resident said he took the vaccine because he believed that Covid could be defeated only if more and more people got inoculated. “We have to break the chain and taking the vaccine will help break the chain,” he said.  

Ranjan Kumar Lahiri, 84 and Anjali Lahiri, 76

The couple’s son had successfully registered his parents but did not receive any text message confirming their registration. “There was a message on the screen and a reference ID was created. I did not know if this meant my parents had been registered, but yet I took them to the hospital,” said Utathya Lahiri, a teacher at Calcutta Boys School.

“I did my father’s registration first but did not note down the reference ID thinking I would receive an SMS. I did not make the mistake when I registered my mother. I noted down the reference ID,” said Utathya.

The result of not having his father referenced was that officials at AMRI Hospitals initially said only his mother would receive a dose. Utathya had to explain to hospital officials the problem and they got his father inoculated, too. “If I had received an SMS, it would have been so much easier. There were problems in the Co-Win portal,” he said.

Siddhartha Chakravorty, 67 a schoolteacher

There was some error — this was the message that appeared on Chakravorty’s screen as he opted for Aadhaar card as his photo identity. When he tried with his PAN, the Co-Win portal said:

“It already exists”.

“I tried for 30 minutes from 9.30am but could not register myself for vaccination. There was a glitch in the portal. I tried with Aarogya Setu app but it redirected the traffic to the Co-Win portal,” said Chakravorty. “I was disappointed because I wanted to take the vaccine,” he said. 

The chemistry teacher said that since he had to go to school nowadays with the ISC exams approaching, he wanted to get vaccinated. “It is a safety measure. If it is available for people of our age, why not take it and stay safe,” he said.