The test of the vaccination program

Jeff Green | Mar 03, 2021

It is clear, one year into the COVID universe, that Canadians, and our region in particular, have fared rather well.

As a country, our infection rate is 25% of the rate in the United Stated and our death rate is about 40% of the death rate down South.

In our region, the numbers are much better than that. In Kingston Frontenac Lennox and Addington as a whole, only 1 death has been recorded thus far, and elderly man (there remains one person in an intensive care unit under ventilation, a circumstance that has lasted for weeks) the number of people who have contracted the virus has been low, and is very low currently (9 active cases, as of Tues. Feb. 3). The last new recorded case in Frontenac County was 18 days ago (as of Monday, March 1) and we have been able to re-open many closed businesses, with restrictions.

Still, we are living under restrictions that make our lives less complete than we are used to, and as we get ready for the summer season, we still don’t know what our lives will look like.

And there are many among us, particularly people who are elderly and immune-compromised and those who live alone, who are about to mark one year of semi or total isolation.

And as far as vaccination rollouts go, Canada is not a world leader.

15% of the United States population has received at least one dose of vaccine, over 30% of UK residents have received a dose, but only 3.6% of Canadians.

And, even with vaccines coming into Ontario at a trickle, only 78% of the doses that have been received have actually been used. Even before the big influx of vaccines that is expected this month, the Ontario delivery system has shown itself to be slow, to get up and running.

In our region, we have seen this as well. Residents in long term care received their vaccine in January, before the flow of supply stopped, but retirement home residents are still waiting, and people ageing at home have not had any access.

Kingston Frontenac Lennox and Addington Public Health (KFLAPH) has now opened a clinic at the Invista Centre in Kingston, and it will be ready to begin inoculating the over 80 population, who can get there or to a clinic in Napanee, when the vaccines arrive. All told, Public Health has indicated they will be able to vaccinate 7,000 people per day, even more if necessary.

That way, even if it takes until April 1st for the system to be working smoothly, in our region we could easily be done by Canada Day, if the supply really ramps up. Officially, the expectation is that everyone in our region will be offered a vaccine by early August. We will be fortunate if indeed the local capacity, to handle the demand for vaccination, could handle a much quicker rollout than that

What concerns me, however, is the population who will not be able to get to one of the vaccine clinics in Kingston or Napanee.

There are many people, particularly in the rural parts of our region, who are not in a position to book through the provincial booking system, who are not in a position to drive to Kingston or even to a mobile clinic in Northbrook, Sharbot Lake or Harrowsmith.

These people need to be identified, contacted, and in many cases they will need someone to come to them with a vaccine. Family Health Teams, community services organisations, and others, need to be fully engaged in an effort to get to this vulnerable population.

Public Health has identified this population as a priority and hopefully these people will be vaccinated this month.

Most of us are going to be in a pretty good place, starting in April. There will be a web form to fill out, or a number to call, when the time comes for our cohort to be offered a vaccine. We just need to wait our turn.

But the vulnerable rural population require a special effort and they need to be reached right away.