STEPHEN RICCIO
PONTIAC Jan. 27, 2021
Private care homes within the Pontiac started to receive their first doses of the Moderna vaccines last week as the CISSSO continued their vaccinations of the first priority group throughout the Outaouais: residents of long-term care facilities.
St. Joseph’s Manor in Campbell’s Bay was among the first private facilities in the entire region to receive vaccinations for all staff and residents, doing so on Jan. 19.
Director General Colleen Larivière said that the vaccinations went smoothly, with a total of . . .
45 people receiving their first dose, 27 of whom were residents and 18 of whom were staff.
She said that receiving the shots was a bright spot for St. Joseph’s.
“Most of the residents that I spoke to were very happy to have the vaccine, I think it gives them a sense of well-being and security so that’s good,” she said.
Larivière explained that the CISSSO staff that arrived to carry out the vaccinating had the employees of the residence situated in one room where the process could be safely carried out. For the residents, the CISSSO went room to room, which Larivière said was done to limit the amount of hallway traffic.
No timeline was provided by the CISSSO as to when the second doses would be administered to the staff and residents, as the Quebec government has made the decision to delay the second doses beyond when the vaccine manufacturers have recommended due to limited supply.
According to an email to THE EQUITY from CISSSO media relations agent Marie-Pier Després, three private homes located in Shawville and Campbell’s Bay received vaccinations last week.
Després added that so far very few people have refused to receive the initial dose of vaccines.
Meanwhile, there continues to be five or less (minimum one) active cases in the Pontiac service area (RLS) as there was an increase of just one to the total case count, which is now 62.
Since the pandemic’s onset, there have been 39 cases in the Municipality of Pontiac while there have been eight different MRC Pontiac municipalities that each have had five or less: Waltham, L’Isle aux Allumettes, Shawville, Fort Coulonge, Mansfield et Pontefract, Otter Lake, I’Île du Grand Calumet and Campbell’s Bay.
The Outaouais had 210 active cases (5,752 total, 5,392 recovered) as of Jan. 27, which is a decrease of 159 cases from Jan. 18 and 220 since Jan. 11. The death toll from the virus stood at 150, with nine more being recorded over the past week, although one death was removed from the overall tally after it was determined that the cause was not COVID-19. There were eight hospitalizations, down from 23 last Monday, with no one in intensive care.
The region is currently dealing with active outbreaks at eight health care facilities: Hull Hospital, Maniwaki Hospital, Hôpital et CHSLD de Papineau, Centre d’hébergement de la Vallée de la Lièvre, CLSC et CHSLD de la Petite-Nation, Résidence La Gappe, Résidence Villa des Brises and RPA Chartwell Domaine Notre Dame.
