With the province now prioritizing COVID-19 vaccination for residents of long-term care and retirement homes, Southwestern Public Health this week began the process across the region. According to the health unit, close to 2,000 residents in these facilities will need vaccination, with 118 shots administered in three homes on Tuesday.
With limited supplies of the Pfizer vaccine, this means shots for staff at St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital are on hold, likely for 3 to 4 weeks, according to hospital president and CEO Robert Biron. He adds the shift in focus to hard-hit long-term care homes is the right call on the part of the province.
Biron notes any hospital staff who already have received their first shot of the Pfizer vaccine will still receive their second shot as it comes due. He did not have a current count on the number of hospital staff who have been vaccinated at the Western Fair Agriplex in London.
