2 COVID-19 vaccine clinics to close as Waterloo region moves to target priority areas

Two COVID-19 vaccination clinics in Waterloo region will close Friday as the region moves to a more targeted approach to reach priority areas of the community.

The Health Sciences Campus clinic is open Thursday from 5 to 8 p.m. while Wellesley is open 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday. Both of the clinics are open from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday.

People can still walk-in to get their first or second dose at either clinic until then.

The Health Sciences Campus Kitchener vaccination clinic, located at King and Victoria streets, and the Wellesley vaccination clinic will close after the Friday clinics. In the case of the Health Sciences Campus, part of the reason is to allow the facility to be prepared for the return of students next month.

In Wellesley, the vaccine will still be available for patients of the Centre for Family Medicine.

The region will continue to run clinics at Pinebush in Cambridge and The Boardwalk in Waterloo.

Focus on priority neighbourhoods

Regional Chair Karen Redman thanked the University of Waterloo and the Centre for Family Medicine for partnering with the region to host the clinics.

"Thank you to all the physicians, pharmacists, nurses, administrative staff, students and volunteers at these clinics who have gone above and beyond to protect residents living in Waterloo Region's urban and rural communities," Redman said in a release.

The region said the focus now will be to target priority neighbourhoods with lower vaccination rates and where people may not find it easy to get their first or second dose.

The region is running two vaccination buses. Some stops are not publicized ahead of time but they will make stops in townhouse complexes, at shopping plazas and other high-traffic areas.

One of the buses will be at the following locations later this week:

• Friday from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Floradale Public School in Elmira.
• Saturday from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Forward Church, 55 Franklin Blvd. in Cambridge.
• Saturday from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. at Cambridge Centre Mall.

The region also noted the vaccine is available at a number of local pharmacies and through many family doctors.

As of Thursday afternoon, 83.93 per cent of people aged 12 and up in Waterloo region had one dose and 74.59 per cent had both doses.

17 new cases

Waterloo region saw 17 new cases reported by public health on Thursday. There was also one death of a person with COVID-19 reported. That brought the total number of COVID-related deaths in the region to 286.

There were 139 active cases.

As well, there were 10 people in the region's three hospitals who were infectious with COVID-19. There were nine people in the intensive care unit, although some of those people may no longer be infectious but still require ongoing care.

There were nine active outbreaks in the region:

• Workplaces: Eight.
• Hospital: One.