The following is a weekly update issued by Hastings Prince Edward Public Health issued each Tuesday afternoon to apprise the community of up-to-date vaccination figures.

HPEPH’s COVID-19 Vaccine Roll Out Plan will help facilitate the efficient and effective delivery of the COVID-19 vaccines in Hastings and Prince Edward Counties and aligns with the Ministry of Health’s COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Plan. As part of our effort to ensure transparent information sharing with all partners and the public, we will be providing a vaccination status update each week. Please note: We are not currently taking appointments for COVID-19 vaccine immunizations and there is no wait list for the vaccine.

We will update more frequently if we receive information that requires urgent release. Our local plan is adjusted anytime new direction is received from the province.

What activities have taken place over the past few weeks?

•We continue to roll out Phase 1 of the HPEPH COVID-19 Vaccine Roll Out Plan as vaccines become available.

•The first COVID-19 vaccine doses have now been provided to all residents in local Long-Term Care Homes (LTCHs) and High-Risk Retirement Homes (HR RHs) and second doses should be completed by mid-March. A total of 1,946 individuals have received a vaccine and we are excited to report that we have fully immunized (have received two doses of the vaccine) 562 individuals against COVID-19.

•A finalized an agreement with Loyalist College for the facility to be a primary vaccination site throughout the immunization process has been reached. Vaccine clinics for Phase 1 First Priority groups as early as next week. These appointments will be for LTCHs and HR RHs staff and essential caregivers. We are working with community partners to finalize a second site in Belleville, as well as sites in Trenton, Wellington and Picton, We are committed to ensuring sites are available throughout the region to ensure access to the vaccine throughout the region.

What activities are coming up?

•Quinte Health Care will be starting to immunize their highest and very high priority health care workers this week, in partnership with HPEPH.

•We are confident the vaccine shipments to this area are going to be much more regular and therefore vaccine roll out will be ramping up significantly over the next few weeks. We are expecting to receive approximately 7,000 doses of vaccine by the middle of March.

•We will continue to work with local hospitals, paramedic services and other health care providers on the implementation of Phase 1 and preparation for Phase 2 of the HPEPH COVID-19 Vaccine Roll Out Plan. Phase 1 immunization will be prioritized as follows: Immediate priority for first-dose vaccination: Residents, staff and essential caregivers in long term care homes, high-risk retirement homes and First Nations elder care homes; Alternative level of care patients in hospitals who have a confirmed admission to a long-term care home, retirement home or other congregate care home for seniors; Highest Priority health care workers, followed by Very High Priority health care workers, in accordance with the Ministry of Health’s guidance on Health Care Worker Prioritization; Indigenous adults in northern remote and higher risk communities (including on-reserve and urban communities)

. For more information and up-to-date alerts regarding the vaccination roll out and COVID case loads in the region, visit hpepublichealth.ca/covid-19-cases/

-Staff