MLHU keeping vaccine sites on hold as Omicron threat rises
The Middlesex-London Health Unit (MLHU) says it is keeping “facilities on hold” should the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus spike demand for vaccines.
Tracey Gordon, the senior manager of the COVID-19 vaccination clinic, says the move is in response to a three-part wave of potential need.
She made her comments in an interview with CTV news London, following a tour of the Western Fair District Agriplex mass vaccination site. It is modified to accommodate children.Tracey Gordon, the senior manger of COVID-19 vaccination clinics for the Middlesex-London Health Unit stands in a family pod at the Agri-Plex mass vaccination clinic. The pods and areas leading to them have been adapted to be more child friendly including activities and decor. (Sean Irvine CTV News)
Currently, the MLHU is vaccinating children between five and 11 years of age, while also ramping up to give booster shots to adults over 50 starting Dec. 13.
Now, vaccination clinic staff are coping with the additional uncertainly of the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus.
MLHU Acting Medical Officer of Health Dr. Alex Summers said this week he believes Omicron will find its way to southwestern Ontario.
Gordon says her staff is preparing to react if needed.
“We have kept some facilities on hold in the background, anticipating we will need to open them,” says Gordon. “We can increase from our current seven-hour to 12-hour shifts.”
The health unit currently operates mass vaccination clinics at London’s Agriplex and the Caradoc Community Centre in Mount Brydges.
Gordon says since children’s vaccinations began a week ago, 4,500 kids have been vaccinated, with just over 3,500 of those given in London.
She says that’s a positive start towards getting a dose into the arms of an estimated 38,000 children in the MLHU’s catchment area.
Adults who got their first and second shots at the Agriplex will notice substantial differences inside.
The facility now has two streams, one solely for kids.
Gordon says the latter is designed to keep children engaged with activities as they move through the process of vaccination.
“We’ve tried to make it a very family-friendly environment. We have look and finds, we have stress stars. We have these family pods that keep families amongst themselves to be vaccinated.”
Vaccination is the key to heading off the virus and its new variant, Gordon maintains.
Nancy Del Maestro, a public health nurse, who came out of retirement is seen preparing a dose of COVID-19 vaccine for children. Behind her is Tracey Gordon, the senior manger of COVID-19 vaccination clinics for the Middlesex-London Health Unit, on Friday, Dec. 3, 2021.(Sean Irvine / CTV News)
Nancy Del Maestro concurs. The retired public health nurse signed up to fight COVID-19 one year ago.
While pleased to be vaccinating children, she admits it has been challenging to keep up with the fight.
“There have been times when you see a bright light at end of the tunnel, and then it dims again. It feels a bit dimmer right now with Omicron, but we’re doing more vaccines, so we’re getting there."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Made-in-Newfoundland vodka claims top prize at worldwide competition
A Newfoundland-made vodka has been named one of the world’s best by judges at this year’s World Vodka Awards.