Dutch woman accidentally vaccinated instead of getting COVID-19 test

A series of unfortunate (or fortunate) events have led to a woman from Lansingerland receiving the coronavirus vaccine instead of a test. It seems that a number of bureaucratic, technical and human errors allowed for such a mix-up to occur.  

The woman had received a letter calling for her to get tested for the virus — but this is where the confusion began. She did not read her letter properly and assumed it was giving her the date and time for her vaccine, not a test.

When she arrived at Rotterdam The Hague Airport, her local GGD location, members of staff failed to check her letter upon entering the vaccination hall. Following this, she had to go to the registration desk and show the confirmation letter to prove she had an appointment.

Ahh, you may be thinking, surely this would have put an end to all this confusion? Nope. It seems the universe wanted this woman vaccinated. She had forgotten her letter to prove the confirmation of her appointment. Usually, when this happens, the member of staff will search the database to ensure a person has an appointment — BUT NO.

The computer was running too slowly and the staff member did not want to hold up the line. The woman was waved forward and found herself receiving a coronavirus vaccine.

Too late to take it back

Once a vaccine is given, everything must be processed. It was only at this point that staff members realised there had been a huge mistake. While a measly 1% of the Dutch population have received the coronavirus vaccine so far — this lucky woman stumbled her way into that percentile.

The woman was checked by a doctor and is in good health, she is expected to receive her second dose of the vaccine in two weeks time.

A spokesperson for the GGD tells the NOS that this accidental vaccine came down to carelessness. “If the registration had been carried out more carefully, the vaccination could not have taken place,” they said. “It shows the importance of all steps being taken carefully. We have taken steps to prevent this from happening in the future.”

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