Venue changed for local COVID-19 vaccinations – SFMH takes over from Legion

After nearly six months at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 406 in Barry’s Bay, the Barry’s Bay COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic will relocate to St. Francis Memorial Hospital (SFMH) as of Thursday, August 19. Since the Clinics opened in March, a staggering 11,455 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered by the Barry’s Bay COVID-19 Vaccination Team. Above from left: Brenda Gabourie, Myrna Florent and Shirley Hill RN. Photo supplied.

Greg McLeod, Chief Operating Officer at SFMH said, “Beginning August 19^th, the Barry’s Bay COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic will be held at St. Francis Memorial Hospital.  There will no longer be a vaccination clinic offered at the Barry’s Bay Legion. We are incredibly grateful for the support that the Barry’s Bay Legion Branch 406 and its leaders provided over the past six months.  Their contribution to our community’s vaccination efforts is appreciated by all.”

McLeod explained how the Vaccination Clinic will operate at SFMH, saying: “August 19^th will be a walk-in clinic held between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m.  No scheduled appointments are necessary, subject to vaccine availability.  The phone number for the vaccination clinic is now: (613) 717-6311.”

Mike Poliquin, Treasurer and Branch 406 Ways and Means Officer, said he had informed McLeod early this year that the Legion considered the Vaccination Clinic an “operational imperative” due to the importance of the vaccine program and for that reason they were more than happy to provide facilities for it at the Legion. When local healthcare partners were selecting a venue last winter, they approved of the Legion as, among other things, it was fully accessible with separate entrance and exit doors. Poliquin said that although the hall is not big compared to some venues, it was a good size for the number of staff running the Barry’s Bay Vaccination Clinic.

Both McLeod and Poliquin — along with many other residents — praised the Barry’s Bay Vaccination Team for their care and efficiency. As reported on June 5, the Clinic had already reached the major milestone of 5,000 vaccine doses administered. Poliquin emphasized the high quality of teamwork between SFMH staff and the Legion. He was impressed by the efficiency and hard work of the Vaccination Team who on some days administered vaccine doses to 400 people. The communication between SFMH and the Legion was excellent; for example, he recalled an email sent on a Sunday from McLeod reminding him there was a “heavy week ahead” when the Clinic was scheduled for four consecutive days in one week. He said the nurses and all members of the team were collaborative and appreciated the use of the Legion facility. “They were really good [to work with] and we responded as best we could to the situation.” Poliquin noted that Branch 406 was happy to offer its facilities as support to the community, even though compared to other Legion Branches there are relatively few veterans living in the immediate area.

Barry’s Bay COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic Team

McLeod was delighted to provide The Current with the following lengthy list of all Vaccination Team members, saying the excellent group included many nurses who came back out of retirement to support the effort. Many team members multi-tasked preparing vaccine, registration, screening, vaccination, etc.

Team leaders were Val Redmond RN, Joanne Plebon RN, and Susan Farrar.

The Current congratulates both the Barry’s Bay COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic Team members and members of the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 406 for this significant collaborative effort to protect our community.