COVID booster shots being offered at Timmins seniors facility
Under recommendations from the province to give high-risk people a third dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, the St. Mary's Gardens Home for the Aged in Timmins jumped at the opportunity to offer a booster shot to its residents.
Following guidance from the Porcupine Health Unit, facility administrator Karla Gagnon said high-risk retirement homes are one of the areas needing the extra protection.
"We love our seniors and we just want to keep them safe," said Gagnon.
"Anything we can do to do that and prevent any kind of an outbreak, that is our main goal."
Provincial and federal vaccine advisory groups have released reports saying a booster shot is likely necessary for immunocompromised people, with concerns that the strength of the first two doses could be weakening.
Using the Moderna Spikevax shot at its clinic, St. Mary's Gardens residents who opted to get pricked for the third time on Thursday said it's giving them better peace of mind.
"We feel safer having this third shot," said Lorraine Cantin, who attended the clinic with her husband.
"We want to start travelling a little bit and just feel safer on flights and where there are larger crowds. We may still (catch the virus) but we're more protected."
"More secure, more relaxed," chimed in husband Antoine Garwah.
Third vaccinations have been making early rounds across the region, with data from the Porcupine Health Unit saying more than 600 people have taken a booster.
That's in addition to around 80 per cent of the total eligible population in the health unit's coverage area who have taken two shots— including more than 90 per cent of people aged 60 and older.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Saskatchewan households will continue to receive carbon tax rebate: Trudeau
Households in Saskatchewan will continue to receive Canada Carbon Rebate payments, despite the province refusing to remit the federal carbon price on natural gas, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
'We hoped for this day, but we were scared that it would not never ever come because it took so long.' That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.