WELLINGTON COUNTY – The local health unit has unveiled a plan that aims to administer up to 10,000 COVID-19 vaccines per day and have three quarters of the region’s population (16 and above) vaccinated by early August.
A Feb. 16 press release from Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health (WDGPH) states the “robust” plan was endorsed by Ontario’s COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Task Force on Feb. 10.
“The mass vaccination against COVID-19 is one of the largest public health projects our region has ever seen,” stated Dr. Nicola Mercer, WDGPH’s Medical Officer of Health.
“It will take a true ‘all-hands-on-deck’ approach to make this plan a reality. I am grateful to our public, private and healthcare partners for their major role in the vaccine plan. Without their support and commitment, vaccinations of this scale and scope would not be possible.”
Officials say they are ready to roll out the program as soon as additional vaccine doses become available.
As of Feb. 15 at 8pm, WDGPH had administered 6,904 first doses and 3,606 second doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, for a total of 10,510 doses.
Doses have been cancelled or delayed in recent weeks due to shipment delays, but Canadian health officials announced this week that those issues may be soon rectified as Pfizer ramps up production.
Local officials say the new WDGPH vaccination program “is committed to vaccinating at least 75% of the population aged 16 years and over against COVID-19 by early August 2021.”
The plan is to administer as many as 10,000 vaccines daily through three basic types of clinics:
- “hub clinics” at WDGPH offices in Guelph and Orangeville, as well as the Centre Wellington Community Sportsplex in Fergus;
- “mobile clinics” supported by partners such as Guelph-Wellington and Dufferin paramedics and Family Health Teams that target rural communities and vulnerable populations; and
- “partner-led clinics” headed by the Guelph Family Health Team, University of Guelph and Linamar.
“All public health-led and partner-led clinics will follow provincial direction and local decision making for vaccine prioritization,” officials stated.
“WDGPH is continuing to work with local Family Health Teams around additional partnerships to increase immunization capacity in our community.”
Dr. Charlotte Yates, president and vice-chancellor of the University of Guelph, said the university is proud to offer on-campus clinics.
“We look forward to working together to help ensure the health and safety of the university and the broader Guelph community,” she stated.
Guelph Family Health Team and Linamar officials also said they’re pleased to be part of the program.
For more information visit www.wdgpublichealth.ca/vaccine.
