St. Luke’s School of Nursing student Maritza Muniz administers a shot of the COVID-19 vaccine to a patient at a St. Luke’s University Health Network vaccine clinic earlier this year. (FILE PHOTO)
Individuals looking for a simple and easy way to sign up to receive the COVID-19 vaccine can now schedule their appointment by texting the word “Vaccine” to St. Luke’s at 23762.
St. Luke’s University Health Network is the first health care provider in the Lehigh Valley to offer this user-friendly solution, which comes just as the CDC has cleared emergency use authorization for the vaccine in kids ages 12-15.
“Throughout the past several months we have been working on ways to provide easy, seamless access to our vaccine appointments,” said Shishir Singh, St. Luke’s Director of Development, Information Technology. St. Luke’s IT team was also responsible for developing Shot-Line, the automated telephone dialing system that enabled users to schedule their vaccines directly over the phone.
In two weeks, more than 600 appointments have been scheduled using the text service and Singh said he anticipates that number will grow as more young people become eligible to be vaccinated.
The service is available in English and Spanish and will direct users to the vaccine locations closest to their zip code. It also ensures that individuals under 18 are scheduled at a Pfizer vaccine location and are provided with the appropriate parental consent form for minors.
“Our team is phenomenal and they are already thinking of other ways to use this capability beyond the vaccine,” said Singh. “The sky’s the limit.”
To schedule a vaccine appointment at one of St. Luke’s multiple locations, text Vaccine to 23762.
Additionally, location information and walk-in hours may be found online at sluhn.org/vaccine-locations.
Note: This local health news is brought to you in partnership with St. Luke’s University Health Network.