As of February 22, Saskatchewan has administered a total of 61,730 vaccines, with 81 per cent of residents living in long-term care homes across the province having received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and 43 per cent being fully vaccinated after having received both the first and second dose of the vaccine.
Currently, the only thing slowing down the administering of vaccines is the shortage that is currently taking place from the federal government. “When we get enough doses, we will be able to quickly finish vaccinating all the residents and staff in our long-term care homes. We look forward to having our seniors in long-term care fully vaccinated as soon as possible so they are protected from the threat of COVID-19,” Health Minister Paul Merriman said.
Currently, we remain in Phase One of the vaccine delivery, which targets residents and staff of long-term and personal care-homes, identified health care providers, residents 70 years and older and residents aged 50 and older in remote/Northern Saskatchewan. Those eligible will be contacted directly.
Once Phase Two is anticipated to begin in April-June of this year and once started, will operate 230 clinics in 180 communities across the province. According to www.saskatchewan.ca, Martensville will include a mass immunization clinic, as well as a drive-thru clinic. More information about the COVID delivery phases can be found at www.saskatchewan.ca under COVID 19 – Vaccine Delivery Phases.
This past January, doctors at Martensville Collective Health and Wellness (MCHW) received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Earlier this month, everyone that received the first dose, received their second with even less side effects than expected.
For Martensville, Dr. Adamus of MCHW, noted that although she does not receive specific numbers on cases within the area, she has not been receiving any further updates specific to the region because our region has not been standing out from amongst the rest of Saskatoon area.
“This is good news because there are things you want to stand out for, and there are things you don’t. This is one that we don’t want to be standing out for. I am very proud of how our community responded. They took the news as unwelcome as it was and they made it matter. They acted on it and that has made such a difference for our community and we are so lucky to have people in the community who are willing to band together to make these sorts of things happen,” Adamus said.
Prior to receiving her vaccination, Dr. Adamus did research, which she recommends for everyone. “People are approaching this vaccine with a lot of caution, which is completely fair. I tell my patients that it is ok to feel uncomfortable in this situation right now. This is new, but just because it is new, doesn’t mean it is bad,” Adamus explained.
“For me, I feel as though I have been so blessed to be able to raise my children in a world where I have not been afraid of life-altering and debilitating diseases like Polio and Smallpox. The reason I could do that is because generations before mine went through very similar situations as to what we are facing now. They were also the first group of people to receive a new type of vaccine – a vaccine that for their times was fantastic technology, which is no where near our current technology. I am looking forward to generations down the road not having to fear this virus the way that we have had to because we did the same for them as our ancestors have done for us,” said Adamus.
For a listing of first and second doses in Saskatchewan administered by geographic zone, visit https://www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-vaccine-update.
