Posted: Feb 18, 2021 4:00 AM ET | Last Updated: February 18
Allison Fisher, executive director of Wabano Centre for Aboriginal Health, says she's happy to know that the vaccine will help reunite Indigenous elders with their families. (Francis Ferland/CBC)
After a winter storm delayed delivery by a day, hundreds of Indigenous elders in Ottawa will get their first COVID-19 vaccinations on Thursday — a milestone for the community.
The Wabano Centre for Aboriginal Health, in partnership with Ottawa Public Health, will administer the first round of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines to about 340 seniors aged 70 years or older.
Vaccinating them first is a priority for the community, said Wabano's executive director Allison Fisher. She said the centre made about 26,000 wellness checks on isolated seniors since the pandemic began.