Northern Health opens the phone lines to all 18 and over as vaccination clinic makes for smooth run

The pace of booking appointments and delivering COVID-19 vaccinations shots at the Jim Ciccone Civic Centre has gone quite well this week, so much so that Northern Health has now changed their protocol on booking appointments.

The Health authority tossing aside the scheduled guidelines yesterday, so as to allow all residents of Prince Rupert and Port Edward to now call in as they wish to book their spot in the line for the ongoing community wide vaccination program.

In a post to their Prince Rupert specific Facebook Page, Northern Health hailed the patience of residents of the region in helping make the clinic run smoothly as well as to explain the new booking guideline with appointments to be taken until Sunday, March 21st.

Northern Health has also used their Facebook forum to try to answer as many questions as they can from the public when it comes to the community clinic, including one which spoke to concerns to ensure that the city's most vulnerable residents were getting their vaccination shots as well.

For those with appointments to come they have also provided a check list of sorts as to how to prepare and what to expect when your turn for your jab comes along.

Throughout that social media forum, many residents have expressed their thanks to Northern Health for the work that has gone into setting up and getting the vaccination clinic underway.

And indeed that is a most remarkable effort, considering that we only received the first hints that such an undertaking was planned for the region just a bit over a week ago, though an inkling that something was in the works was delivered by Doctor Bonnie Henry at a COVID briefing on the 8th of March.

Since the announcement of the plans for the community wide vaccination program though all hands were on deck, from Northern Health, to city staff, council members and workers at the Recreation centre and a host of civic volunteers who have offered their time to help ensure that the transition from booked phone appointment, to vaccination shot has been as seamless as possible. 

And while there have been some glitches along the way, for the most part it has been a fascinating thing to view as the program rolled out. 

Prince Rupert perhaps to serve as the template for Health Authorities across the province and maybe even the nation as to how to get something done in as short a period of time as possible.

The clinics continue through the month, though with a clock work like approach towards ensuring that everyone who wants a COVID shot gets a COVID shot, the road show may soon be moving on to another town, their work in Prince Rupert complete and a new situation to tend to no doubt just over the horizon.

More notes on Northern Health can be explored from our archive page here.