Residents eager to know where they fit in the vaccination plan

Excitement and relief at the prospect getting a vaccine is also being met with frustration.

Barrie resident Elizabeth Priddle said she’s finding it challenging to locate information about where she and her husband, who are both in their early 80s, would fit in the rollout guidelines. She is also worried the inability to pre-register for the next round of vaccinations in Simcoe County could leave her and her husband at the back of a very long line.

“We just want to know from the (Simcoe Muskoka District) Health Unit when, where and how to get the vaccine,” she told BarrieToday. “What’s frustrating is other health units are setting up pre-registration for 80-year-olds, which is mainly why I went online and there is absolutely no information that I can see out of our health unit.”

If the local health unit is offering a pre-registration list for the next phase of the vaccination plan, Priddle wants to ensure she and her husband get on it as soon as possible.

“The vaccine is in very short supply and if there is any way I can be sure we are going to get a vaccine we want to get the two of us on a list," she said.

According to the health unit's website, those who are currently on the wait-list will be contacted with an appointment date between today and March 16.

It also notes the wait-list was closed because the province of Ontario is launching a new booking system and call centre to support COVID-19 vaccine appointment booking in mid-March. Additional information on who is eligible for the vaccine and when is also available on the SMDHU website.

Health unit spokesperson Leslie Gordon told BarrieToday they just received confirmation from the province that residents will be able to put their names on a list for pre-registration once the new site is up and running. Once that is done, officials will contact you to set up the actual appointment, she added.

There had been the opportunity to pre-register through the health unit for the first two-week period appointment bookings were being done on the health unit's website, however once the appointments and the wait-list were full, that was no longer an option.

“We haven’t been able to do that because we are waiting for this transition over to the provincial system," she said. "Keep checking back on our website as of next week and you can get the updated information.”

The local health unit launched 13 community clinics this week, said Dr. Charles Gardner, the medical officer of health for Simcoe-Muskoka, but those are currently available by appointment only. He suggested residents take a look at the health unit’s website or calling to determine how to book an appointment in order to ensure the right groups are being given priority.

Clinics are currently fully booked, he acknowledged, but said with additional supply of the vaccine on their way to the region, he anticipates more appointments will open up shortly.

That influx in supply, he added, is because the province is giving additional vaccines to areas they consider to be hotspots — and Simcoe-Muskoka is considered to be one of them, likely due to the influx of variants of concern in the region.

“The province is extending intervals between the two vaccines up to four months beyond the first dose,” Gardner explained. “Extending that timeline could be helpful in that it would mean more people will get their first dose sooner and (can) offer protection to a larger group of people sooner.”

While the health unit is currently utilizing its own online booking system, Gardner said come mid-March, they will begin transitioning over to the new provincial system. That process, he noted, will be done cautiously in order to avoid any potential issues that could occur during the switchover.

“We will carefully transition into their system to make sure it all works well before we decide what to do with our own system,” he said.

Locally, Gardner noted, the health unit is getting ready to begin Phase 2, which is slated for mid-April and includes adults aged 60 to 79, those who live in high-risk congregate settings such as shelters and community living, individuals with high-risk chronic conditions and their caregivers, essential workers who cannot work from home and other at-risk populations.

“By that point, it will be the province that’s driving the timing of these things," the doctor said.

Notification to specific subgroups — such as health-care workers — has come directly from the health unit, he said, however family physicians have been asked to notify their patients 85-plus regarding the vaccinations.

“When we get to other age groups, we will take the same approach,” Gardner added. “There is light at the end of the tunnel with vaccination, but this is only just beginning.”

The following is the breakdown of the Ontario government’s three-phase vaccination plan.