Use the province's online booking system for vaccine appointments, say Hamilton city officials

Hamilton city officials are urging people eligible for the COVID-19 vaccineto use the province's online booking tool once it opens on Monday.

Paul Johnson, director of the city's emergency operations centre, said it's been a "less than smooth" processso far in booking appointments. That can change, he said, with the province's system. It opens to residents aged 80 and oldernext week.

Though people will still be able toget help and book appointmentsby calling public health's COVID-19 hotline, Johnson stressed that it is not an "alternative" way. If you're able to use the online system, he said, you should be doing that.

"[The online tool] is the fastest way, it's the most efficient way, and it is the way we are encouraging you to access it," he said."If we have several hundred people call all at once, our system cannot handle that."

Johnson said the city has more operators to answer questionsand a larger queuesystem so people can wait on hold. Operators will also most likely ask if someone has tried the online system, he said.

He reminded people that vaccine appointments are only available through the online system for those born in 1941 or earlier. Toronto got early access to the site on Friday, and it will be available on Monday for Hamilton.

"Please, don't anyone else go and try and book an appointment because that is not for you. There will be another time for you down the road," said Mayor Fred Eisenberger.

"Don't tie up these lines. We don't want to have this system crash."

Here's how to book an appointment

You will need an Ontario health card to book an appointment online. But Michelle Baird, the city's director of epidemiology, wellness and communicable disease control, said that doesn't mean you can't access the vaccine without one.

Those without a card, or people who don't have access to the internet or a computer, can callthe city hotline at 905-974-9848 option 7.

In a COVID-19 update on Friday, Dr. Elizabeth Richardson, the city's medical officer of health, outlined how Hamilton residents can use the provincial system:

1. Make sure you have an Ontario photo health card.
2. Visit the city website to see if you are eligible to get a vaccine.
3. If you are eligible, click the link to book your vaccine appointment. It will direct you to the province's portal.
4. Fill out your personal information.
5. Choose the location, date and time for your appointment.

Appointments will be opened in line with the amount of vaccines available, said Baird.

"The last thing we want to do is offer appointments and not have the supply to match," she said.

Callbacks from the city for those 85 and older who registered for a vaccine will also stop at 4 p.m. on Sunday. If you haven't received a call, Johnson said, use the online booking tool.

Community health-care workers who have registered through the vaccine registration online portal and have received a confirmation email will remain in the queue, do not need to re-register, the city said.

Once the city has increased supply, Johnson said,it willbook people in as fast as possible. But until then, he said, people need to be patient.

"Be patient with the systems that are in place to help you book. Be patient with the people who are trying to assist you to get those bookings, and be patient overall in terms of when you will actually be able to book an appointment," he said.

Vaccination clinic at FirstOntarioCentre

Hamilton has administered more than 50,000 doses of the vaccine, Baird said, with 16,000 people receiving their second dose.

The city said that as of March 10, there were 6,300 doses have been administered to those85 and older, making that 55 per cent of the eligible population vaccinated.

Vaccine supplies will increase on March 22, she said, which is when FirstOntarioCentre will launch as a large-scale COVID-19 vaccination clinic.

Hamilton Public Health Services will manage it, along with St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton, Hamilton Health Sciences,primary care physicians and Hamilton Paramedic Services.

The clinic will be used on an ongoing basis, says the city,for residents who are eligible for the vaccine and able to visit the clinic. The roll out will follow the provincial government's phased approach, and will also depend on vaccine supply.

Vaccinations at the clinic will startslowly, the city said, and will work up to a full capacity of around 3,000 vaccines a day.

Appointments will be available once the clinic opens. There will be no walk-ins allowed.

The mobile vaccination clinics and large-scale vaccination clinicsSt. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton West 5thCampus and theHamilton Health Sciences clinic will continue administering the vaccine. There have been pop-up clinics in Stoney Creek, Glanbrook, Ancaster, Dundas and Waterdown to vaccinate those 85 and older.

Rosedale Arena will be the site of another large-scale clinic.

A separate pilot program involving some doctors in Hamilton will also contact eligible residents to book appointments for the AstraZeneca vaccine. Residents are asked to wait for their doctors to reach out to them.

Baird said members of the urban Indigenous population in Hamilton can get a vaccine at St. Joseph's large-scale clinic if they are over the age of 55, but that will open up to the full Indigenous population as of next week.

Hamilton

There were 78 new COVID-19 cases in Hamilton reported on Friday, bringing total cases to 11,110. Of these, 470 are active and 10,148 people have recovered.

Two more people have died, bring the number of deaths to 293. Data from the city shows these people were both in their 60s.

The weekly new rate of cases per 100,000 people has grown to 68, and the reproduction number has increased to 1.15. The number of COVID-19 tests that were positive has also increased to 2.9 per cent.

There are 28 outbreaks, with the most recent being at Notre Dame House Youth Shelter with one staff member infected.

The DHL Logistics Mount Hope outbreak has grown to nine staff, and the St. Joseph's West 5th campus outbreak has grown to seven.The Good Shepherd Women's Services Mary's Place outbreakisover.

Brant

The Brant County Health Unit (BCHU) will be rebooking COVID-19 vaccine appointment times for residents who have a second-dose appointment booked, according to a media release.

Those appointments will now be booked 16 weeks after the first dose has been administered. The health unit will contact residents about the change and next steps for booking a new appointment.

Within the next two weeks, the BCHU says anyone making an appointment for a first dose will also be able to book their second appointments under this 16-week time frame too.

Earlier this March, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization recommended stretching the time between first and second doses of Health Canada-approved vaccines to 16 weeks. The BCHU says the provincial government has directed them to follow this recommendation.

The BCHU says the change would allow Ontario to maximize the number of people receiving a first dose.

People who won't have their second dose extended, says the health unit,include:

• Residents of long-term care homes, retirement homes, elder care lodges and assisted living facilities who are at the greatest risk of both exposure to COVID-19 and serious illness and death.
• Remote and isolated First Nation communities.

Brantrecorded nine new cases in the last 24 hours. There are 61 active cases in the county, according todata online.

There have been 1,570cases since March 2020 and 12 deaths. Two people are currently hospitalized with COVID-19.

A total of 1,498cases have been marked as resolved.

There have been 14,028 doses of the vaccine administered.

Haldimand-Norfolk

The counties ofHaldimand and Norfolk have recorded1,484cases throughout the pandemic. There are 41 active cases.

There have been 39deaths that are considered COVID-related, and 1,399people who have recovered.

There havebeen 11,013 doses of the vaccine administered.

Niagara

Niagara reported 28 new cases of the viruson Friday.The region has seen8,865cases over the course of the pandemic,including 240 that are active and 8,252that are resolved.

Two more people in the region have died, for a total of373.

Four cases in the region have been identified as a variant of concern B117, which originated in the U.K. There are 99 other cases that have screened positive as a variant of concern, but are waiting for official confirmation.

There have been 13,165doses of the vaccine administered in Niagara.

The Fort Erie Native Friendship Centre partnered with Niagara Region Public Healthto offer the first of several vaccination clinics to Indigenous adults over the age of 55, says a media release.

There were more than1,000 adults vaccinated this past week, says Niagara Region,and a similar clinic is planned for March 15 at the Niagara Regional Native Centre in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

With the opening of the province's booking system for vaccine appointments, the regionsays public health will have at least oneclinic running every day of the week, rotating through different communities.

Clinics will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on March 18 and 19, and then from 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. for clinics on March 20 and beyond.

First dates for clinics in each community are listed online.

Halton

The number of COVID-19 cases in Halton rose by 45 on Friday for a total of9,959so far.

Data indicates 295 of those cases are active and 9,466are resolved.

Twelve of the new cases were in Burlington, which has seen 2,512cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic. There are 57active cases in the city.

There have been 198deaths in the region, of which 49 were in Burlington.

The region is reporting a total of 189 variant cases, with 21 being confirmed as variants of concern. The other 168have been screened positiveand are waiting for final confirmation.

There have been 40,922doses of the vaccineadministered across the region.

Six Nations

Six Nations of the Grand Riverhas recorded 40active cases of COVID-19 as of Friday.

There has been 411total cases, and 366are resolved. Five people have died.

Four people with the virus are currently hospitalized.Six Nations is in two weeks of lockdown until Friday, March 19.

The chiefs and clan mothers of the Haudenosaunee ConfederacyChiefs Council (HCCC) offered condolences to those who have lost loved ones in its community update on Thursday, andstressed the importance of people's safety.

Despite many precautions in place and ceremonies with no instances of the virus numerous COVID-19cases were reported during the midwinter ceremonies at Six Nations, it said.

The HCCC is encouraging anyone that attended the most recent midwinter ceremonies, or who has been in contact with someone who did,to reach out to their local COVID-19 assessment centre for guidance.

The HCCC says it knows that isolation and lockdown measures have been hard on individuals, families and the community as a whole.

"We want to thank the individuals that have carried on our ceremonies up to this point in time. Maintaining the wellness and sovereignty of our community through our traditional practices. We recognize that the level of stress on these individuals has been tremendous," it said in a statement.

"We alsoneed to think of their well-being moving forward and we are now temporarily removing that responsibility until we have fully passed through this pandemic. That means, we leave it to the individual longhouses how to proceed without gathering a crowd to conduct ceremonies."

The council is encouraging everyone to stay within their own households, except for essential purposes, to curb the spread of the virus.

It's also calling on people to uplift others, and not to blame or shame someone who has contracted the virus, which may lead to more stress.

"Be there for each other, care for one another and we will get through this as a strong Haudenosaunee community."