Today, Niagara Health started scheduling high-risk healthcare workers for their second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at a shortened interval.
An estimated 13,000 healthcare workers in Niagara will be impacted by this new provincial direction to shorten the second-dose interval.
Groups included are:
- Niagara Health staff and physicians in frontline roles with COVID-19 patients and/or with a high risk of exposure to COVID-19
- Long-term care and high-risk retirement home staff and essential caregivers
- Medical first responders, including paramedics, firefighters and police
- Certain community healthcare workers serving specialized populations (i.e. nurses and personal support workers caring for recipients of chronic homecare)
“Fully vaccinating our Niagara Health staff and physicians against COVID-19 is a priority to keep them safe,” said Linda Boich, Executive Vice President at Niagara Health overseeing our vaccination program. “This is an encouraging step forward to protect our teams and high-risk healthcare workers in Niagara who are doing everything they can to protect the health and safety of our community.”
Our community vaccination efforts continue, and existing first-dose appointments are not impacted. As of May 13, Niagara Health has administered 109,212 COVID-19 doses. Based on the latest data from Niagara Region, more than 210,000 vaccine doses have been administered in Niagara, and more than 40 per cent of the Niagara community has received their first dose.
As Niagara Health continues to face significant pressures in the hospital, we strongly urge the community to follow public health measures to minimize further increases in COVID-19 cases. This includes masking, physical distancing, handwashing, staying home and getting vaccinated when you are able to do so.
