On an island in Lake Ontario, some 10 kilometres west of Kingston, lives a community consisting mostly of seniors who have remained isolated — for the most part — from the risk of COVID-19.
“It’s a very good community. … So if you were in need of something, you’d probably call your neighbour,” said Linda Welbanks, who moved to Amherst Island 20 years ago.
The 400 or so residents have stayed as much as possible in a “bubble,” explained Ida Gavlis, a lifelong resident of Amherst Island.
Gavlis worried about her fellow community members leaving the island for their annual flu shot, recognizing it was important that they get vaccinated.
“With COVID-19 and so many seniors on Amherst Island, … we didn’t want everybody going to the mainland to try to get shots so I thought it’d be a good idea to try to arrange them here,” she said.
Gavlis reached out to pharmacist Jen Baker at the Loyalist Pharmacist in Amherstview to see if she could help. Baker started making arrangements.
“In having that conversation with her, we recognized that it was really important for the community, especially with seniors or anyone with mobility challenges, to be able to be immunized against the flu in this year in their community at home and make it easier to access that flu shot,” Baker said.
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In planning for a two-day mobile flu clinic on an island, Baker had to overcome a number of challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic and the at-risk population she would be serving.
She said there were a lot of logistics to consider to ensure there would be social distancing and other precautions necessary to avoid the potential spread of COVID-19.
“That’s why doing it in the community is so important, because we’re not taking inhabitants of the island into the mainland, where it may be expanding their bubble unnecessarily, for the flu shot,” Baker said.
That is when Molly Stroyman, owner of a local inn called The Lodge, pitched in and offered up a safe space for the seniors.
“The Lodge has been a place where the community has been made very welcome because we had the space,” Stroyman said.
Holding the clinic at The Lodge saved the seniors from having to take the ferry all the way over to the mainland, then drive to a hospital, an office or a doctor’s place, she said.
“It’s a lot of work for them,” Stroyman said.
“I don’t think we’ve had a single case of COVID-19 here on the island and people have been extremely careful and extremely cautious,” she added.
Among those who took advantage of the two-day flu clinic were some who have never received the vaccine in the past, like general store owner David McGinn.
“I run the general store and I have to stay aware of how to keep the community safe. So I learned a lot of information this year that I never paid attention to before,” he said, after getting his flu shot.
This year, the demand for the flu shot has been higher than in years past with fears swirling over the potential for a “twindemic” featuring both influenza and COVID-19.
Last month, Health Minister Christine Elliott insisted there is no flu shot shortage in Ontario, despite many people expressing concern about finding a pharmacy with supply.
“This has been a very challenging flu season. We’re seeing upwards of 500 per cent more demand from this point last year and that’s creating some challenges,” said Justin Bates, CEO of the Ontario Pharmacists Association.
“Pharmacists are having to cancel appointments. They’re having to look at how can they procure more vaccine to meet the demand. So certainly, demand is outpacing supply. We need to make sure that we’re directing all of the supply to where the demand is. And we’re an important part of making sure that everybody gets vaccinated,” he added.
For Gravlis, a flu clinic on the island amid the pandemic is only the first step toward keeping residents safe.
“All of us are older so we need a walk-in medical clinic desperately. It would be fabulous to have a nurse practitioner and an over-the-counter pharmacy and all kinds of things,” she said.
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