This past weekend, Team Toronto successfully kicked off Vax The East, vaccinating more than 1,760 people against COVID-19 at Ontario Science Centre and Thorncliffe Park Community Hub vaccination clinics. The two clinics vaccinated 728 people on Saturday and 1,038 people on Sunday, totaling 514 brave children age five to 11 and 1,252 youth and adults who came out to enjoy fun, family-friendly activities while getting vaccinated to protect themselves and others.
Team Toronto is now calling on Scarborough residents to show love for their neighbourhoods by getting vaccinated during Vax The East: Scarborough. The vaccination event will run from today through Family Day, bringing mobile pop-up clinics to more than 30 schools across Scarborough. The school-based clinics will provide convenient access to vaccines within priority neighbourhoods, including Bendale, Dorset Park, Eglinton East, Ionview, L’Amoreaux, Malvern, Morningside, Rouge, Scarborough Village, Tam O’Shanter-Sullivan, West Hill, Wexford/Maryvale and Woburn.
Vax The East: Scarborough pop-up clinics will run during the school day to vaccinate hundreds of students with parental consent and school staff. The clinics then continue to operate after school until 7 p.m. to offer vaccines to families and the wider community. Vax The East: Scarborough will also be holding clinics from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday, February 18 – a PA day – as well as over the weekend and on Family Day.
Today, Vax The East: Scarborough will be in four Scarborough-neighbourhood schools:
Vax The East: Scarborough clinics will offer Pfizer and Moderna first, second and third doses. A health card is not required for vaccination. Appointments can be booked in advance and walk-ins will be available. More information, including a full list of schools, specific dates and times, and how to book an appointment is available on the Scarborough COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic website.
At the clinics, young public health superheroes age five to 11 will be awarded a “certificate of bravery” for getting their vaccine and will receive a V-Team passport, stickers, colouring pages and a special Scarborough Hospital Heroes activity book. Physicians and nurses will be present to answer vaccine-related questions, in a safe setting familiar to kids and families. All clinics will be fully accessible and accommodations are possible for those who need assistance during their visit.
Vax The East: Scarborough is the next piece of Team Toronto’s Vax The East, a 10-day hyper-local vaccination drive launched on February 12 to bring COVID-19 vaccines to Toronto’s east, in particular to neighbourhoods with lower vaccination rates.
This week, Team Toronto’s community health centre partners, Vaccine Engagement Teams and community ambassadors are out in in the community sharing information about mobile Vax The East clinics with Scarborough residents. The teams are also providing translated flyers with clinic and vaccine information in multiple languages including Arabic, Bengali, Farsi, French, Gujarati, Hindi, Polish, Punjabi, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Swahili, Tagalog, Tamil, Ukrainian and Urdu. The City’s VaxTO program is also sending broadcast voice messages to promote the clinic and provide access to vaccination information to local residents this week.
Vax The East is a collaboration between the City of Toronto, Toronto Public Health, Michael Garron Hospital, East Toronto Health Partners, Scarborough Health Network, Scarborough Ontario Health Team partners, Ontario Science Centre, Toronto District School Board, Toronto Catholic District School Board, TTC, Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC) and Team Toronto partners to support communities with lower COVID-19 vaccination rates.
In addition to Vax The East pop-up clinics, there are many other ways to get vaccinated throughout Toronto’s east end. The vaccination clinic in the Thorncliffe Park Community Hub, home of Vax The East: Thorncliffe Park, continues to operate every day for appointments between 8:15 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. and walk-ins starting at 9 a.m., with 50 walk-in vaccinations available per hour. Learn more on the Michael Garron Hospital website.
Vaccination appointments are also available at five City-run clinics, including a clinic in the Scarborough Town Centre, to residents needing a first, second or third dose of vaccine, as well as children over the age of five. Appointments can be booked online through the provincial booking system or by calling 1-833-943-3900. All City-run clinics accept walk-ins.
The Toronto Zoo also continues to hold a vaccination clinic in the Zoo’s Special Event Centre at 2000 Meadowvale Rd. Currently, the Toronto Zoo clinic provides third “booster” doses to adults over the age of 18 and first and second doses for children age 5 to 11. To book an appointment at the Toronto Zoo clinic, visit the FH Health website.
COVID-19 vaccines are also available at hospital partner clinics, more than 525 local pharmacies, and primary care offices across the city. More information about vaccination options in Scarborough and across Toronto is available on the City’s COVID-19: How to Get Vaccinated webpage.
Residents are encouraged to follow #VaxTheEast for the latest updates from Vax The East partners and @CityofToronto, the City’s Twitter account.
Quotes:
“Last weekend’s Vax The East: Flemingdon Park and Thorncliffe Park were a great boost to east-end vaccination rates. Now, Vax The East: Scarborough is continuing this important work, bringing vaccines into schools and closer to home for Toronto residents. Through hyper-local campaigns like Vax The East, Team Toronto partners are working tirelessly to reach into communities with lower COVID-19 vaccination rates. Our ambassadors are out every day, knocking on doors and sharing vaccination information in multiple languages. If you are eligible for a vaccination: the time is now. It has never been easier to get vaccinated against COVID-19 close to home.”
– Mayor John Tory
“Following a hugely successful Vax The East kick-off this past weekend in Flemingdon Park and Thorncliffe, Team Toronto is ready to launch Vax The East: Scarborough. Building off of this past weekend’s momentum, we’re bringing our hyper-local strategy to Scarborough. Thanks to Scarborough Health Network and our incredible Team Toronto partners, Vax The East: Scarborough will make getting vaccinated east and accessible for kids and adults in targeted neighbourhoods.”
– Councillor Joe Cressy (Spadina-Fort York), Chair of the Toronto Board of Health
“Bringing vaccines to where people live, study and play is key to promoting vaccine uptake. I encourage every Scarborough resident who has questions about vaccines to connect with their primary care provider or use the Scarborough Health Network VaxFacts service which is an excellent made-in-Scarborough resource. Visit www.shn.ca/vaxfacts to learn more. Thank you to the Team Toronto partners involved in pulling together another excellent community vaccination event.”
– Dr. Eileen de Villa, Medical Officer of Health
Toronto is home to more than 2.9 million people whose diversity and experiences make this great city Canada’s leading economic engine and one of the world’s most diverse and livable cities. As the fourth largest city in North America, Toronto is a global leader in technology, finance, film, music, culture and innovation, and consistently places at the top of international rankings due to investments championed by its government, residents and businesses. For more information visit the City’s website or follow us on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.
This news release was updated at 9 a.m. on February 14, 2022 to correct the address of George B Little Public School to 125 Orton Park Rd.