Sudbury’s health unit pausing routine vaccination services
Public Health Sudbury & Districts is pausing routine vaccination services for the time being to focus on COVID-19 immunizations. It’s now looking to local physicians for assistance in delivering a number of routine vaccinations.
Officials with Public Health Sudbury & Districts said due to the pandemic, they have had to reduce the number of immunization clinics that are normally offered on-site.
"We change as the pandemic changes and the needs of the pandemic. So, for example, this is a very timely reduction with the surge in cases and the immunization being open up to different populations," said Megan Touchette, manager of vaccine-preventable diseases and COVID-19 prevention with Public Health Sudbury & Districts.
The health unit is prioritizing certain immunization services during the period of service reduction, Touchette said.
"For infants and toddlers who require primary vaccinations series and eligible pregnant women who are 27 to 32 weeks gestation requiring Tdap vaccine, and this would include those who are without a primary care provider," she said.
Public health is now reaching out to primary care providers to help administer routine vaccinations to help fill the gap that will be created.
"Whether it’s through your health care provider, a health care unit, or pharmacy. While the pharmacy does provide influenza and COVID-19, they don’t provide other routine vaccinations that would be publicly funded,” Touchette said. "However, they can provide cost recovery vaccines such as a TWINRIX for hepatitis A, those types of things."
City of Lakes Family Health Team is just one of many stepping up to help give people their routine vaccinations, including grade seven and eight students who were unable to get their mandatory shots last year due to the schools being closed.
"Public health will help us out by giving us the vaccine. We have a collaboration with them so they will provide us the vaccine to immunize our patients that didn’t get their grade seven vaccines,” said Catherine Pichette, a registered nurse with City of Lakes Family Health Team. "Between our four clinics, we did a search in our system and we have roughly 640 students that we don’t have information in their charts at this time."
Officials with the health unit said they are unsure how long these routine services will be suspended and that it will depend on COVID-19 cases.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
'Sophisticated' cyberattacks detected on B.C. government networks, premier says
There has been a "sophisticated" cybersecurity breach detected on B.C. government networks, Premier David Eby confirmed Wednesday evening.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
Canucks claw out 5-4 comeback win over Oilers in Game 1
Dakota Joshua had a goal and two assists and the Vancouver Canucks scored three third-period goals to claw out a 5-4 comeback victory over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series Wednesday.
Nijjar murder suspect says he had Canadian study permit in immigration firm's video
One of the Indian nationals accused of murdering British Columbia Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar says in a social media video that he received a Canadian study permit with the help of an Indian immigration consultancy.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.