Significant increases in 1st dose uptake in L6Y postal code after 17-day clinic

More than 9,400 COVID-19 vaccinations were administered at the closing of Sheridan’s 1st dose CommUNITY pop-up COVID-19 vaccination clinic.

Located at Sheridan’s Davis Campus in Brampton, the clinic was a true community initiative, fueled by a collaboration between Sheridan, the Region of Peel, Indus Community Services, Punjabi Community Health Services, the Latin-American COVID-19 Task Force and the Government of Ontario.

With the aim of reaching under-vaccinated communities, the clinic was designed to be low barrier and accessible to all. The overwhelming response enabled organizers to extend its operations twice, and at one point, administer over 700 doses in a single day.

Data from the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences showed that L6Y – the targeted postal code — now has the highest percentage vaccine uptake in the entire Region of Peel. The percentage of 18–29-year-olds in that area who have received their first dose is now hovering around 100 per cent. This group saw a significant increase in uptake over the duration of the clinic (about 17 per cent).

“I think its safe to say that the Sheridan CommUNITY clinic played an important part in achieving these stats, along with everyone’s efforts to reach the community,” says Dr. Lawrence Loh, Medical Officer of Health, Region of Peel Public Health. “As we reach the critical milestone of providing first doses to 75% of Peel’s population, we must ensure that marginalized and vulnerable groups in our community don’t get left behind. The efforts of Indus Community Services, Punjabi Community Health Services, the Latin-American COVID-19 Task Force and Sheridan College to reach international students, essential workers, uninsured individuals and other key groups, supports this goal.”

“This is such an important example of how we can make significant, demonstrable change when we bring together our collective strengths and focus on a shared, singular goal,” said Dr. Janet Morrison, Sheridan’s President and Vice-Chancellor. “Galvanizing collaboration is how challenging problems get solved and those are the kinds of partnerships where we thrive and where we see more opportunities ahead.”

Over the course of 17 days, the clinic welcomed individuals who lived, worked or studied in the Region of Peel, including many Sheridan students, alumni, faculty and staff. Several government officials took the time to tour the clinic and show their support, including Dr. Loh, the Honourable Prabmeet Singh Sarkaria, Associate Minister of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction, Regional Councillor Martin Medeiros, City Councillor Jeff Bowman, MPP Amarjot Sandhu and MP Sonia Sidhu.

The clinic was run by the Ministry of Health in conjunction with Peel Public Health in accordance with stringent health and safety standards. Nearly 130 staff and volunteers from the partnering organizations helped provide non-clinical support onsite.

Sheridan is proud to collaborate with its partners on Canada’s mass vaccination effort in the battle against COVID-19.

Pictured, from the top: Janet Morrison, Sheridan President and Vice Chancellor, poses with MPP Amarjot Sandhu, the Honourable Prabmeet Singh Sarkaria, Associate Minister of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction, and representatives from Indus Community Services and Punjabi Community Health Services; Dr. Lawrence Loh, Peel Region Chief Medical Officer of Health poses with Regional Councillor Martin Medeiros, City Councillor Jeff Bowman, and representatives from Sheridan, Indus Community Services and Punjabi Community Health Services; MPP Sonia Sidhu pictured with Karen LeMoine, Sheridan's Director, Stakeholder Engagement and Community Relations.