Four more Kivalliq communities get vaccination clinic dates

Rankin Inlet, Chesterfield Inlet, Whale Cove and Baker Lake to receive first doses of vaccine by end of January

COVID-19 vaccination clinics will be held before the end of January in the Nunavut communities of Rankin Inlet, Whale Cove, Chesterfield Inlet and Baker Lake. Another 12,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine is expected to arrive in the territory by the first week of February. (File photo)

By Dustin Patar

Residents of Rankin Inlet, Chesterfield Inlet, Whale Cove and Baker Lake will all have a chance to receive their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine before the end of the month.

The announcement comes after Nunavut’s chief public health officer, Dr. Michael Patterson, said during a news conference on Thursday, Jan. 14, that another 6,000 vaccines were expected to arrive in Nunavut during the first week of February, bringing the territory’s total to 18,000.

“The Kivalliq region is more reliant on travel south for medical travel than the other two regions and this means that the risk of … introducing COVID-19 into the region [is] higher,” he said.

Noticeably absent from today’s announcement was Sanikiluaq, where Nunavut’s first cases of the virus were discovered in early November.

Patterson said that Sanikiluaq will be in the next round of vaccination clinics.

Similar to the clinics in Iqaluit that were announced earlier this week, the clinics in Rankin Inlet, Chesterfield Inlet and Whale Cove will all begin next week.

The Baker Lake clinic for priority populations, residents 65 and older and health-care staff, will begin the last week of January. Depending upon vaccine availability, Patterson said that the eligible population in Baker Lake might be expanded.

Patterson also announced that Gjoa Haven and Igloolik will receive their second doses of the vaccine in early February.

Here is Nunavut’s current COVID-19 vaccination schedule:

  • January 14-18 (excluding Sunday): Arviat
  • January 14-16: Cambridge Bay
  • January 18-22, 23: Iqaluit (priority populations)
  • January 18-21: Rankin Inlet
  • January 19-20: Whale Cove
  • January 22-23: Chesterfield Inlet
  • January 25-27: Baker Lake (priority populations)
  • February 1-2: Igloolik
  • February 8-9: Gjoa Haven

Patterson asked residents in these communities call their health centre to book an appointment.

To date, more than 600 vaccines have been given to Nunavummiut, Patterson said, adding that the final numbers from the clinics earlier this week in Gjoa Haven and Igloolik are still being counted.

For more information regarding the COVID-19 vaccine, including community-specific information and vaccination schedules, visit the Government of Nunavut’s website.

Share This Story

(1) Comment:

  1. Posted by Qavvigarjuk on

    Cant wait to get the vaccine on Monday YEAH!!!

Comments are closed.