CLEVELAND — As of Friday, the vaccine registration is opening up to a million more Ohioans.
Ohioans 40 years-old and older can now register for a coronavirus vaccine along with people with medical conditions including cancer, chronic kidney disease, COPD, heart disease and obesity.
While this is welcome news for so many, it is creating some frustration for those who’ve been looking for a vaccine for weeks. However, the power of social media is helping thousands of people book appointments while offering tips and tricks for those less computer savvy.
Cleveland native Nick Waterhouse knew he could help Ohioans with the power of social media, so he created a Facebook page: Ohio Vaccine Hunters.
“There’s not one centralized hub to get information,” said Waterhouse. “Thousands, if not tens of thousands of people have directly gotten vaccines through Facebook groups like this throughout the country.”
The group currently has more than 6,000 members and offers information even tips and tricks to book a vaccine. It also offers volunteers who can help you find your shot including Amanda Parker-Wolery.
“This is a once in a lifetime moment where all of our lives are upside down and I feel there is a slight civic duty to helping others.”
Parker-Wolery knows the importance of helping others; her father was diagnosed with cancer when covid first hit the US. His neighbor in an assisted care facility passed away just days after she found her father a shot.
“There are so many other people out there it could have been there dad, their grandparents, themselves, that just carries a lot of weight,” said Parker-Wolery. “My number one tip is staying persistent, there is no streamline process.”
Additionally, it’s important to have multiple browsers open at one time, like Google Chrome, Firefox, or Safari. If you don’t see vaccine appointments right away, keep checking, sites are adding hourly. For Giant Eagle, 3News has been told, the site updates with appointments every five minutes.
Additionally, Parker-Wolery uses two websites which update vaccine information including: https://www.vaccinespotter.org/ and http://ohcovidvaccines.com./
“They update every ten minutes. If you have both of those open in your browser and refresh on a continual basis you will probably be able to find a vaccine within 24 hours.”
For Waterhouse, he feels relief knowing his Facebook page is helping hundreds of Ohioans find a vaccine. It’s also restored his faith in social media.
“It has been very refreshing to use this as something as extremely and overwhelmingly positive.”
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Editor's Note: The below video aired on March 15, 2021