COVID-19 vaccine clinics open up in Sarnia, Chatham-Kent

The first COVID-19 vaccines for front-line workers are being administered at new clinics in Chatham-Kent and Sarnia.

Rick Walker, maintenance supervisor at Riverview Gardens Long Term Care in Chatham, was the firstto receive a COVID-19 vaccine at the new clinic when it opened on Tuesday.

His shot was given by the municipality's medical officer of health Dr. David Colby.

The clinic, located at the John D. Bradley Convention Centre in Chatham, is a 25,000-square foot space with 10 vaccination bays.

It's staffed by a group of health-care professionals includingworkers from Chatham-Kent Health Alliance (CKHA) and Chatham-Kent EMS.

Staff and essential caregivers at long-term care and high-risk retirement homes are currently eligible to receive a first dose of the vaccine.

Lori Marshall, CEO of CKHA, said on Monday that about300 people will be vaccinated on the first day.

"The individuals who are being done this week are being specifically contacted through the various organizations that they either work with or that they're a caregiver of a long-term care or retirement home resident with," she said.

Workers at the sitecan deliver about 60 shots an hour or 420 a day, which the facility says will ramp up in the coming weeks as more vaccine supply is received.

"As long as we have vaccine product, we'll be open seven days a week," Willi Kirenko, the manager of the clinic, said Monday.

WATCH: Take a look inside Chatham's vaccine clinic

Vaccine clinic opens in Chatham

4 years ago

Duration 1:59

The John D. Bradley Convention Centre has been transformed into a vaccination clinic. Its first day of operation was Tuesday.

Chatham-Kent's firstshipment of the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine was receivedMonday, and additional supply is expected in March. The other vaccine approved for use in Canada, made by Moderna,is being used to vaccinate residents in long-term care and retirement homes.

Sarnia clinic to operate for 4-5 days

Sarnia, which was one of the last areasof the province to receive a supply of the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine, also started administering shots for health-care workers at a new clinic on Tuesday.

The clinic at Bluewater Health is open only to the highest risk health-care workers. There are over 2,000 people on staff at Bluewater Health, and the clinic will be operatingfor four or five days until supplies run out, according to a news release.

The first employee to receive the shot in Sarnia, a 63-year-old emergency department nurse, said it was an honour.

"It's a start to keeping my family, my colleagues, and my community safe,"Fred Osmonsaid in the news release.

"The pandemic has been a significant strain on all healthcare workers, and I know that we are excited to see the vaccines rolling out here. There is light at the end of the tunnel."