A change in the time between doses of some COVID-19 vaccines means scheduling adjustments at Windsor Regional Hospital.
The hospital said Monday evening that due to the provincial changes in vaccine rollout, those who received the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine will now wait up to 16 weeks before getting the second shot.
The new schedule takes effect at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday. The adjustment covers those who received their first Pfizer dose at a WRH vaccination clinic between February 18 and Wednesday.
"Those who will have the date for their second dose changed will be getting an email. For those without email, we will try to contact them," read a release from the hospital.
According to a memo sent to hospitals by Dr. David Williams, Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health, the new 16-week interval will apply to the two-dose Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca vaccines, and it is designed to increase the number of Ontarians benefiting from the first dose.
"Current evidence from real-world experience with the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines indicates high vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic disease, hospitalization and death from COVID-19 for two months after the first dose, including among older populations," read the memo.
Vaccinations are currently available for residents aged 80 and older, as well as long-term care residents and adults in Indigenous populations.
The hospital has provided a table showing the date of the patient's second dose, corresponding to the date of the first one.
