Some Guelph area family doctors given green light to administer vaccine

Guelph area doctors start administering vaccine From CTV Kitchener's Natalie Van Rooy: Family doctors in the Guelph area are now able to administer the COVID-19 vaccine.

GUELPH — A handful of family doctors in the Guelph area are starting to administer the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to eligible patients as time is ticking before the supply expires.

As of Saturday, the rollout is being offered in six Ontario regions, including Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph, to people between the ages of 60 and 64.

Nearly 30,000 AstraZeneca doses are being made available to doctors before their upcoming expiry date.

"After Apr. 2, they will have expired and can't be used," said Dr. Samantha Hill, Ontario Medical Association president. "There really is a tight deadline around getting these very small quantities of doses out and into arms."

Dr. Nicola Mercer, the chief medical officer of health for WDG Public Health, told CTV News on Wednesday that the region would receive 4,500 doses.

While it's not clear which family doctors have gained access to the vaccine, Dr. Hill says that decision is up to the public health units.

"The family doctors who have access to the vaccine will be calling their patients," she said. "There's no reason for you to reach out and call your family doctor."

Some family doctors in Toronto, Peel, Hamilton, Peterborough, and Simcoe-Muskoka also began administering the shot today.

"Some people don't have access to family doctors," said Zahid Butt, a professor at the University of Waterloo school of public health systems. "I think the network should maybe be expanded to walk-in clinics so you have a broader outreach to the population."

Hill adds that most of the vaccines are still being administered through the mass vaccination sites.

Meanwhile, COVID-19 vaccinations for phase one priority groups continue at multiple sites throughout Waterloo Region and in Guelph.

Nearly 25,000 COVId-19 vaccination doses have been administered as of Friday morning, according to WDG Public Health's website.

The city is set to open another mass vaccination site at the University of Guelph on Monday.

"We will start ramping up," said Dr. Charlotte Yates, University of Guelph's president. "At our full capacity we will be able to do 2,000 a day."

The site will be located at the University Centre and be open Monday to Friday.