Lambton public health’s role with COVID-19 and flu vaccinations this fall has shifted, with provincial government changes making pharmacies and health-care providers the primary source.
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So says Lambton’s medical officer of health Karalyn Dueck..
Vaccination clinics the health unit traditionally has held in the fall at its Point Edward office won’t be on offer this year, she said.
Instead, she said, there will be specialty clinics for minors, and nurses will provide on-site vaccinations in First Nation communities and for people who are homebound.
That’s amid the Ministry of Health expanding access points where people can get vaccinated, Dueck said, adding vaccines will be available in Lambton for whoever wants them.
“We at Lambton public health have been given a directive to focus on reaching populations with limited vaccine access options,” Dueck said.
General public access at pharmacies and health-care providers starts Oct. 28, while vaccines become available mid-month for children younger than six years and older than four months, people who are pregnant, First Nation communities, people 65 and older, and first responders, officials said in a news release.
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Public health pediatric clinics start Oct. 17 for kids six and younger, and older than four months, Dueck said.
“As of Oct. 28, we’ll be taking children up to (age) 17 in our pediatric clinic,” she said.
Call 519-383-8331 to book an appointment, she said.
There’s little operational impact from the changes, said Shaun Bisson, public relations coordinator with Lambton’s health unit.
“The nurses who were doing flu and COVID immunizations last year are still doing them this year,” he said. “It’s just where the location of that is shifting.”
The change also means a focus on reaching people who might not have been able to attend vaccination clinics at the health unit’s office in the past, Dueck said.
“Our staff are able to now go out in the community and reach (those) populations,” she said.
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Details about pharmacies offering influenza and COVID-19 vaccines are at ontario.ca/vaccine-locations.
“Vaccines are one tool to help your body practice memory to fight off these viruses,” Dueck said.
People should also stay home when sick and wear a mask until 10 days from symptom onset, practice good hand hygiene, regularly clean surfaces, cover their mouths when coughing or sneezing, and, if high risk, consider wearing a mask and speak with a health -care provider about antiviral treatment options, officials said in the release.
“And remembering to make these a habit and to keep our community safe,” Dueck said.
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