First Peterborough Retirement Residence Received First Mass Dose of COVID-19 Vaccination

It was all smiles for the residents and staff of Canterbury Gardens as they all received the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine on Friday.

It was the first retirement home in Peterborough to receive the mass vaccination. The most vulnerable residents were the ones to receive the shot first as the oldest resident had the honourary first shot.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Beaudoin

“It was an exciting day for all of us at Canterbury Gardens Retirement Residence,” said Sarah Beaudoin, Canterbury Gardens Manager Resident Services.

Peterborough Public Health (PPH) had these vaccinations as a test run for online and telephone booking that will take place region-wide. It will be used once more vaccines have become more available. PPH has yet to announce when the booking process will be publicly open.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Beaudoin

Residents will be getting their second dose of the vaccine late this month at an undisclosed date.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Beaudoin

Royal Gardens Retirement Residence residents and staff also received their first dose of the vaccine on Friday.

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Fleming College Addresses COVID-19 Outbreak at Severn Court in Peterborough

After a declared COVID-19 outbreak from Severn Court outside Fleming College by Peterborough Public Health on Saturday, the campus issued a media release concerning the incident Wednesday morning.

Maureen Adamson, Fleming College President, addressed the COVID-19 outbreak at the off-campus, privately-owned Severn Court buildings in a letter that was sent to all staff and students Wednesday morning. The outbreak has led to the cancellation of all in-person classes and activities at Sutherland Campus for 14 days from Mar. 1.

Photo courtesy Fleming College

Here is the President’s letter in its entirety:

“We continue to be deeply concerned about the COVID-19 outbreak at the Severn Court apartment complex. This complex is not affiliated with the College. It is privately-owned and independently-operated. As of March 2, Peterborough Public Health (PPH) had identified 34 students who have tested positive. The ongoing investigation could lead to many more cases.

Fleming College prides itself on creating strong communities. Being a member of our community comes with responsibility. For those students training for careers in healthcare professions, there are even higher expectations and professional standards that are expected to be upheld. It is obvious that a group of students chose to behave in an irresponsible manner that has put many members of our community at risk.

To the students who were part of the unauthorized gatherings, we are extremely disappointed in your actions. Your behaviours are inconsistent with our values and with our expectations of all our students, regardless of the fact that these actions took place in an off-campus setting.

Photo courtesy Fleming College

For those students who are proven to have been involved in the gatherings of February 20 that led to the outbreak, we intend to impose the harshest possible sanctions allowed under our Student Rights and Responsibilities Policy in proportion to the role played by each participant. This could include penalties up to and including suspension or expulsion. The College will continue to cooperate with PPH in their investigation and will offer our full cooperation with Peterborough Police Service should that become necessary.

To the students who are innocent victims of the actions of others, we pledge our full support to ensure the successful completion of your studies. We will offer additional academic and personal counselling services and we will ensure that all learning outcomes for your program are achieved without extending the semester.

The vast majority of our students have adhered to safe practice guidelines for almost one full year. Our employees have worked tirelessly to ensure the safety of our community. The measures we have put in place in our teaching and learning facilities, as well as our own on-campus residences have worked. We have not had a case of COVID-19 transmission occur at any of our campuses. This makes the behaviour of this small group of students even more disheartening and the apparent lack of the attention to safety protocols at a large complex populated by students so upsetting.

We recognize that the general public and our valued partners are also very disappointed. As we take action to investigate and hold those responsible accountable for their actions, we must also come together to support each other. As some positive signs are emerging in the global battle against the virus, Fleming College, like so many members of our community, pledges to build back better, together.”

–Maureen Adamson, Fleming College President

First Case Of COVID-19 Variant of Concern Reported In Peterborough Region

Peterborough Public Health has confirmed in a media release that a local resident has tested positive for COVID-19 variant of concern (VOC) B.1.1.7, also known as the variant first detected in the United Kingdom.

“With this confirmation of a variant of concern, following public health measures has never been more important as VOCs have a higher rate of transmissibility than the dominant COVID-19 strain,” says Dr. Salvaterra, Medical Officer of Health. “Now it’s a race against time to try and immunize our most vulnerable populations while containing the spread of further cases. This is where we need everyone’s help.”

The case is a male in his 20s who works from home and is self-isolating. Contact tracing is underway, and it appears his exposure was from a roommate who was identified as a high-risk contact of another VOC case from another region. This roommate has since left the Peterborough area. There is one other high-risk contact connected to this household who tested negative, and this individual will be retested again on Day 10 post-exposure.

Even though the Peterborough region is designed Yellow according to the provincial COVID-19 framework, Dr. Salvaterra urged local residents to avoid all non-essential travel, don’t invite visitors into your home, stay two metres distant from others, wear a mask, wash your hands frequently, and get tested if you have even one symptom.

“The good news is that the vaccines in use are effective against the known variant strains,” adds Dr. Salvaterra. “But we are still a long way away from having all our vulnerable populations protected. We are working very hard to ramp up our local immunization roll out as supplies allow, so we are counting on the community’s support so we can avoid the exponential spread of the virus as seen in other areas of the world.”

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PRHC Receives Very First Shipment Of 5,850 Doses Of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine

Peterborough Regional Health Centre (PRHC) has announced they have received their first shipment of 5,850 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.

The hospital’s COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic will ramp up this week, administering the vaccine to long-term care home employees and essential caregivers, community paramedics and highest-risk hospital healthcare workers—all of whom have been designated as immediate-priority populations by the Province of Ontario.

Photo courtesy PRHC

Between Wednesday, February 24th and Sunday, February 28th, we expect to be able to offer up to 2,500 vaccination appointments for these populations.

“Healthcare workers and first responders in our community have shown, and continue to show, an incredible amount of resilience and teamwork throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and we are thrilled to have this vaccine available for them,” says Dr. Lynn Mikula, EVP, Chief of Staff and Chief Medical Executive at PRHC.

"It's exciting to see our local vaccination rollout program gain traction with increasing supply so we can immunize high-priority groups," says Dr. Rosana Salvaterra, Medical Officer of Health. "This will help us start to build a ring of protection around our most vulnerable residents – a critical goal as variants of concern arrive in our community."

Staffed by hospital RNs and RPNs as well as physicians from PRHC and the Peterborough community, once up and running at full capacity, PRHC’s COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic will offer up to 700 vaccination appointments daily, seven (7) days a week, based on ongoing supply and demand.

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Well-Known Peterborough Family Creates Fundraiser for Hospice Peterborough

In honour of the late Jan Paris, the local family who founded and owns Paris Marine in Lakefield has pledged to match donations to the Hospice monthly giving program until the end of February.

At age 73, Jan was a healthy and vibrant Peterborough woman who enjoyed volunteering, painting, taking trips with her husband to their second home in Florida and spending as much time as she could with her beloved grandchildren.

After getting an all-clear from a physical in July 2019, however, she’d learn by the end of the year that she had a rare form of leukemia. The Paris family say they relied on Hospice Peterborough services throughout Jan’s illness and when it was time to grieve.

The Paris family: Jan and Bill Paris with daughters Tracey, Deborah and Julie. (photo courtesy Hospice Peterborough)

“I don’t know how we would’ve gotten through this without Hospice Peterborough,” says Bill Paris, her husband of more than 50 years. “It’s the kind of organization that you don’t know much about until the time comes that you need them.”

To honour Jan’s memory, her family has initiated the “For the Love of Jan” fundraiser for Hospice Peterborough and has pledged to match all donations made to the monthly giving program, up to $10,000, until the end of February. To date, more than $6,000 has been received.

Jan and Bill Paris created more than 50 years’ worth of memories together. (photo courtesy Hospice Peterborough)

All donations to “For the Love of Jan” will be directed to programs that support children and teens, an area for which Hospice Peterborough receives no government funding.

The groups support youth in our community who have experienced the death of someone close to them and—often through arts-based activities—help them manage their feelings and behaviours. Through the pandemic, Hospice continues to offer these services virtually either one-on-one or in small groups.

Jan Paris with her granddaughter Kensington. (photo courtesy Hospice Peterborough)

Hospice Peterborough executive director Hajni Hős thanks the Paris family for sharing their deeply personal story and for giving back to the community in memory of a loved one.

“It is fitting to direct these funds to children and teen groups in honour of a cherished mother and grandmother who devoted herself to her family,” Hős says. “When children in our community can better manage their grief, we all win.”

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Peterborough Public Health Moves Back Into Yellow Zone, Here Are Guidelines

As of Tuesday (February 16th), Peterborough Public Health (PPH) has moved back into the Yellow – PROTECT level of the provincial COVID-19 Response Framework.

“It’s vital that residents understand a return to Yellow does not mean the end of public health measures, and that we all need to keep up our efforts with frequent hand washing, maintaining physical distance, wearing a mask, staying home when sick, and avoiding non-essential travel,” says Dr. Rosana Salvaterra, Medical Officer of Health.

Dr. Salvaterra adds that the good news is that regional indicators continue to improve, so that it may be possible for PPH to return to the Green-PREVENT level. “The provincial approach has been to move down the framework more slowly, usually waiting for enough time to elapse to show that the indicators are indeed stable before restrictions are eased. We’ll need to stay at Green a little longer before we can earn the right to move down,” she adds.

KEY INDICATORS USED BY ONTARIO CABINET TO DETERMINE LEVEL

The key indicators that are used by the Ontario Cabinet to determine which level public health units fit into according to the provincial framework include epidemiology of the virus (e.g., case incidence rate, % testing positivity), confirmed presence of COVID-19 variants of concern (VOCs), health system capacity, public health system capacity, and local context and conditions.

There are general public health measures applicable to all businesses and organizations open to the public, including:

• Complete COVID-19 Safety Plans that are posted and available for staff and members of the public

• Active screening of all employees before beginning a work shift

• Passive screening (posting signage) for all customers and members of the public

• Ensuring compliance by staff and the public for mandatory masks and face coverings

• Ensuring that an establishment is set up to facilitate physical distancing

• Frequent cleaning and disinfection of equipment provided to the public and high-touch points in the establishment

For a full outline of the new guidelines, please click here.

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106 Year Old Elizabeth Campbell First To Receive COVID-19 Vaccine In Peterborough

Fairhaven Long-Term Care Home (LTCH) was the first facility to receive the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine in the Peterborough region.

Elizabeth Campbell, aged 106, a resident at Fairhaven LTCH, received the first dose on Tuesday afternoon (January 26th) from Lori Rowsell, Infection Prevention and Control Practitioner at Fairhaven.

“This is an exciting day for Peterborough,” says Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Rosana Salvaterra. “Immunizing long-term care home residents with the COVID- 19 vaccine is the first step to seeing our vulnerable populations protected against COVID-19.”

Lori Rowsell administering Moderna vaccine to Elizabeth Campbell (photo courtesy Peterborough Public health)

The Ministry of Health prioritized LTCHs as the first setting to receive the COVID-19 vaccine in Ontario. All public health units are required to vaccinate LTCH residents with their first dose by February 5th.

Depending on vaccine supply coming into the region, Peterborough Public Health will be vaccinating the entire population of LTCH residents (approximately 1,100 individuals) in the coming two weeks.

The Peterborough Interagency COVID-19 Vaccine Planning Team is working to determine the next population in Peterborough to receive the vaccine. This will depend on a number of criteria including provincial guidelines, COVID-19 risk for each population, and supply of the vaccine locally.

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Peterborough Region Just Received Its First Supply of Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine

Peterborough Public Health (PPH) and Peterborough Regional Health Centre (PRHC) are pleased to share that the first local supply of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine has been received.

The supply was delivered to PRHC on Monday morning (January 25th) and administration of the vaccine to long-term care home (LTCH) residents is set to begin on Tuesday (January 26). In alignment with provincial strategy, PRHC and PPH will work together to support the administration of the COVID-19 vaccine. The first 500 doses of the vaccine are to be administered to long-term care home residents.

Photo courtesy PRHC

in this community. LTCHs and Retirement Homes deemed high-risk have been prioritized in the province as the population with highest risk for COVID-19 related complications. It is for this reason that LTCHs will be the first to receive the vaccine in Peterborough. There are no high-risk retirement homes in Peterborough.

Logistical planning for phase 1 of the vaccine rollout began in late December 2020. PPH and PRHC in collaboration with various other community groups are continuing this planning to expand immunization as supply allows. Communication on further expansion of COVID-19 immunization in Peterborough will be released as plans become finalized, according to Peterborough Public Health.

Learn more about Ontario’s COVID-19 vaccination program and the rollout of the vaccine locally by visiting peterboroughpublichealth.ca.

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Local Schools To Reopen January 25th With Enhanced Public Health Measures

Publicly-funded elementary and secondary schools in Peterborough City and County will be permitted to resume in-person learning on January 25th.

After reviewing the most recent COVID-19 data and on the advice of the Chief Medical Officer of Health, Peterborough Public Health (PPH) is one of the seven public health units given the green light to allow students return on Monday.

This means that most schools in the following schools boards will resume in-person learning:

• Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board (Peterborough City and County, Northumberland County, Hastings County only)

• Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington Catholic District School Board (Peterborough City and County, Northumberland County and Kawartha Lakes only)

• Conseil scolaire catholique MonAvenir (Peterborough City and County only)

In a media release by Peterborough Public Health, Dr. Salvaterra, Medical Officer of Health, explains that local COVID-19 rates in children haven’t risen as much as in other areas to warrant keeping area schools closed.

“In our community, the testing positivity rate is relatively low at 1.1%,” she says. “We are closely following our numbers and monitoring the trends. If the situation in our region changes, we will take appropriate action.”

For local students and staff currently exhibiting any COVID-19 symptoms, Dr. Salvaterra strongly encourages them to get tested now so they have their test results before school resumes on January 25th. Even though schools will reopen for in-person learning, staff and students must stay home if they have symptoms and while waiting for test results.

Dr. Salvaterra also notes that the provincial shutdown with enhanced measures as well as the stay at home order remains in effect for all of Ontario until at least February 11th, which means no socialization or gatherings before or after school even with cohorts.

With this reopening, the province requires schools to add additional public health measures, such as masking in younger grades and enhanced screening requirements to ensure students can safely return to school and reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission.

For an entire, detailed breakdown of the enhanced measures being put in place, click here.

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PRHC Radiation Treatment Centre Reopens Following Replacement Of Linear Accelerator

Peterborough Regional Health Centre and Lakeridge Health have announced that the radiation treatment facility at PRHC resumed operation on Monday, January 11th, following the replacement of the medical linear accelerator (LINAC) technology in late 2020. (A LINAC is the device most commonly used for external beam radiation treatments for patients with cancer, and delivers high-energy x-rays or electrons to the region of the patient's tumour in a way that destroys the cancer cells while sparing the surrounding normal tissue.)

“We are pleased to welcome patients back to PRHC for their radiation treatments this week,” says Brenda Weir, Vice President, Regional Programs at PRHC. “The new LINAC has been made possible through our partnership with Durham Regional Cancer Centre at Lakeridge Health. Regular renewal of our equipment and technology helps us to maintain high-quality care for patients, and to keep PRHC’s radiation treatment facility consistent with a provincial standard of care.”

“The installation of the radiation facility at PRHC in 2013 has brought cancer treatment closer to home for more than 2,000 patients and families in Peterborough and the surrounding communities in the years since it was first opened,” says Lesley Heighway, President of the PRHC Foundation.

“The installation of this facility was made possible at the time through the generous support of PRHC Foundation donors, and we are excited about this further provincial investment into state-of-the-art radiation technology that will ensure patients in our community continue to receive the best cancer care possible, closer to home,” Heighway adds.

Construction to replace the LINAC began in September 2020. Throughout the fall and early winter, patients who would normally receive their treatment at PRHC have received their treatment at the Durham Regional Cancer Centre at Lakeridge Health.

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