In an event held Friday at the P&H Centre in Hanover, Dr Ian Arra, Medical Officer of Health and Chief Executive Officer of the Grey Bruce Health Unit, announced the region now has three locations ready to serve as mass immunization hubs. "The Hockey Hub an ideal solution for large scale immunization, not just locally but across Canada," said Arra.
In a Bruce Power media release, in collaboration with the health unit, Grey and Bruce counties, and other community partners, Bruce Power provided resources and logistical support to help convert the P&H Centre in Hanover, the Davidson Centre in Kincardine, and the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre in Owen Sound into mass immunization hubs. All three sites are ready to vaccinate local residents once large quantities of the vaccine become available in Grey Bruce.
These hubs can administer 4,500 vaccines per day with five nurses, compared to about 1,000 vaccines per day and 20 nurses in a traditional large-volume clinic. The efficiency is based on a streamlined flow-through process and the ability to use non-clinical staff for non-clinical tasks, preserving clinical capacity across the region.
See: Health Unit creates "Hockey Hub" to administer COVID-19 vaccinations
By activating all three hubs, given sufficient supply of vaccine, it would take approximately 21 days to vaccinate 75 per cent of Grey Bruce’s population, a process that would take months using conventional clinics.
“Bruce Power remains committed to working with public health officials and all levels of government to provide resources, logistical support and expertise to assist in COVID-19 immunization efforts in our region and across the province,” said James Scongack, Bruce Power’s Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs & Operational Services. “As a member of the Grey Bruce COVID-19 Task Force and co-chair of the Ontario Vaccination Support Council, launched by the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, it is encouraging to see the collective effort shown by government, private organizations, and public health officials in the face of the pandemic.”
Since the onset of the pandemic, Bruce Power has provided nearly 2.5 million pieces of personal protective equipment to frontline workers, businesses, Indigenous communities and schools, the largest announced donation of PPE from Canada’s private sector. The company has also spent $1 million on public education efforts, community protection, shop local initiatives, activities and organizations that promote mental and physical health, and lending a helping hand to those in need through its Be a Light and Powering Ontario Through COVID-19 campaigns.
