Volunteers and Beeple reinforce each other in Belgian vaccination centres

Half of the Flemish cities and municipalities and all Walloon vaccination centres use Beeple to get the right volunteers at the right time in the vaccination centres. Truus, Lief and San, three vaccination heroes, talk about their experiences and the use of Beeple on the vaccination floor.

Insecure deliveries

Vaccination centres are very dependent on the confirmation of the vaccines. Unfortunately, that comes only just before the possible delivery. "You communicate your availabilities in advance, but because of the late confirmation of the vaccines, you know quite late when you have to work effectively. For example, I signed up last Friday for a Wednesday shift," says Lief, a volunteer in the vaccination centre at Spoor Oost. "So we have to plan and make adjustments at very short notice, week by week. We can do that with Beeple because it is so flexible. I don't think there is another system that can do that," confirms San Segers, planning manager at the Malle vaccination centre.

A smooth workflow

"The organisation is well managed. The process from registration to vaccination to leaving the centre goes very smoothly. People are immediately shown the way. You just can't go wrong and waiting times are short. People always say, 'Wow, things are moving fast here,'" explains Lief. For everything to run smoothly, a lot of volunteers are needed, and Beeple readily matched this need. "We built up our Beeple environment step by step. It is now fully adapted to our way of working. We did not have to change our workflow," says San.

Invite 1400 people with one click

"There are three types of volunteer projects: medical, call centre and steward. All three require different schedules, but also different profiles. Different vacancies are published and the registered volunteers and employees only receive vacancies that match their profiles. With one click of a button I can invite the 1400 people in our database for the open shifts that suit them instead of calling or emailing everyone personally," says San.

Volunteers make their own schedule

"As an employee, you can sign up for a shift at the push of a button," says Truus Meermans, a volunteer at the vaccination centres in Malle and Antwerp. The volunteers and employees schedule themselves and the planner can see at any time how many shifts have been filled. "Once you have signed up for a shift, you get a confirmation e-mail and the shift automatically appears in your personal Beeple planning," says Truus.

Keeping an overview

"At the end of the week, I can export lists and reports from Beeple. For example, I can do the financial reporting and send the planning lists to Randstad, so that they can make the payments of the volunteer allowance and salaries of medical staff correctly," says San. The vaccination centres work closely with Randstad. The staffing agency screens medical profiles and indicates in the progress of the screening process in the Beeple for each candidate. They can also consult personal information for administration and insurance purposes.

Employees and volunteers at work (with Beeple)

Truus: "The app is easy to install and very intuitive to use. It also looks nice. I do voluntary work in two vaccination centres. Yet I only have to sign in once at Beeple and with one simple click I can switch centres to sign up for shifts and consult the planning per location," says Truus.

Once they have signed up for a shift, employees receive a confirmation e-mail with the date, time, location and parking information, and a QR code to sign in upon arrival. Lief says she is well informed in advance. "Every two weeks you get a newsletter full of information and I have already followed three webinars so that I know what to do in my role as steward and scriptor. Once on site, your name is called out and you get a briefing. Actually, everything has been thought of." The cooperation is also smooth. "Everyone is very friendly, collegial and helps each other."

Absolutely no lack of motivation

"I am very happy to be able to do something useful after spending a year at home. It is really good to be able to help and guide people. You come home with a good feeling," says Lief. "The work itself is very nice. There is a very positive atmosphere and that gives a lot of energy," Truus explains. Lief and Truus are not the only volunteers who are extremely motivated. The ladies explain that you have to be quick to secure a spot as a volunteer. "Once there are vacancies, it goes very quickly. You have to make sure you have the Beeple app on your phone. If you wait for the mail announcing the new shifts and then try to sign up, the shifts are already full anyway," Lief says. "The app is really a must to get a spot quickly," confirms Truus.

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