COVID-19 Vaccines: Information for Health Care Providers

1. City of Thunder Bay and surrounding rural communities

Please use the following forms for ordering COVID-19 vaccine, as well as reporting vaccine administration to TBDHU:

• COVID-19 Vaccine Order Form (Updated December 22, 2022)
• Modified COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic Daily Metrics Form (Updated December 22, 2022)
• Contact TBDHU with any questions: vaccineinventory@tbdhu.com

2.  District

• Contact your nearest branch office to order vaccine
• Report doses using the Modified COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic Daily Metrics Form (updated December 22, 2022)

1. City of Thunder Bay and surrounding rural communities

• Order vaccine from the distributor
• Contact TBDHU to inquire about transferring small orders of paediatric vaccine. Submitting metric forms would be required to track doses.
  • Order vaccine using the COVID-19 Vaccine Order Form (updated December 22, 2022)
  • Report doses using the Modified COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic Daily Metrics Form (updated December 22, 2022)
  2. District
• Contact your nearest TBDHU branch office to order vaccine. Submitting metric forms would be required to track doses.
  • Report doses using the Modified COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic Daily Metrics Form (updated December 22, 2022)
• Order vaccine from the distributor

Reasons for Wastage

• DA - Damaged Product
• DE - Defective Product
• WR - B30 - Stored in refrigerated temperatures (2-8degrees C) beyond 30 days
• WR - B48h - Stored in refrigerated temperatures (2-8 degrees C) beyond 48 hours
• WR - B5 - Stored in refrigerated temperatures (2-8degreesC) beyond 5 days
• WR - BE - Stored in ult/freezer/fridge temperatures beyond expiry date
• WR - DR - Dose(s) Remaining in a Multi-dose vial
• WR - ID - Insufficient Dose(s) From a Single/Multi-Dose Vial
• WR - R12 - Vial Left at Room Temperature Beyond 12 hours
• WR - R2 - Reconstituted Vial Left at Room Temperature Beyond 2 hours
• WR - R24 - Vial Left at Room Temperature Beyond 24 hours
• WR - R6 - Punctured/Reconstituted but not used within 6 hours
• WR - RF - Refrozen after being thawed
• WR - SV - Suspected Vaccine Contamination
• WR - UN - Unused Pre-drawn Syringe
• WR - VA - Vaccine Administration Issue
• WR - VA - Vaccine Ancillary Supply Issue Causing Vaccine Wastage
• WR - VA - Vaccine Stored Temperature Excursion at Clinic

Reasons for Excursion Events

• Human Error - Electricity
• Human Error - Improper Storage
• Human Error - Other
• Human Error - Refrigerator/Freezer Door Left Ajar
• Human Error - Unmonitored Refrigerator/Freezer
• Malfunction – Equipment
• Malfunction – Refrigerator/Freezer
• Other
• Power Outage
• Temperature - Breached In Transit – External
• Temperature - Breached In Transit – Internal
• Unknown
• Emergency/Natural Disaster
• Transport Delays

Source: Health Data Branch; February 1, 2022; email correspondence

To obtain an enhanced certificate with QR code, individuals who have an eligible medical exemption must ask an Ontario physician or registered nurse in the extended class to submit their exemption directly to the public health unit where the issuer’s practice is located. Medical exemptions issued outside of Ontario are not eligible for an enhanced vaccine certificate. Please see below under "Resources" for a Sample Statement of Medical Exemption COVID-19 Immunization.

Primary care providers must send medical exemptions directly to TBDHU - they will not be accepted from clients.

Providers can fax valid medical exemptions to (807) 625-4828 or email vaccines@tbdhu.com to request the secure transfer of the patient’s exemption.

Valid exemptions will be entered into COVaxON and clients will notified by TBDHU. 

Resources:

• Medical Exemption Guidance - English (gov.on.ca)
• Sample Statement of Medical Exemption COVID-19 Immunization - Public Use (Thunder Bay District Health Unit) 

Directive #6 regarding COVID-19 vaccination and testing policies for public hospitals, home care and community service provider organizations, Home and Community Care Supports Service organizations and ambulance services with respect to paramedics, was revoked effective March 14, 2022.

The purpose of the Primary Care Registry Form is to identify local primary care* practitioners who would be willing to participate in COVID-19 immunization clinics led or supported by the Thunder Bay District Health Unit (TBDHU). Individuals who are registered agree to be contacted by TBDHU to schedule their participation in clinics, pending availability.  TBDHU commits to ensuring the Registry information is kept confidential and is used only for the purpose described herein.

*For the purpose of Registry, primary care is defined as health professionals who have the authority to administer COVID-19 vaccine without a medical directive (i.e. MDs, NPs, RNs and RPNs, pharmacists, pharmacist interns, registered pharmacy students or pharmacy technicians).

Additional information is available on the Primary Care Registry Form: COVID-19 Vaccination. 

For individuals who received a COVID-19 vaccine outside of Ontario, it is possible to have this recorded in COVaxON, Ontario’s provincial system to record COVID-19 vaccination. However, only public health units can enter this information; pharmacies and primary care offices do not have the ability to do so.

At this time, proof of immunization received from the place of immunization, (such as a card or receipt), is needed before the TBDHU can create a record and record the vaccination. Currently, proof can be provided via:

• Fax to (807) 625-4828
• Mail to Vaccine Preventable Disease Program, Thunder Bay District Health Unit, 999 Balmoral Street, Thunder Bay, ON, P7B 6E7
• Drop off to your nearest TBDHU office

Email is not an option at this time, but this information will be updated if it becomes available in the future.

Please contact the Vaccine Preventable Disease program with any questions by calling (807) 625-5900 or toll-free at 1-888-294-6630 (extension 5108 or press 4 on the main menu). You can also call your nearest branch office. 

A COVID-19 Guidance Document for Individuals Vaccinated outside Ontario (PDF) is also available for health care providers.

• How Vaccine Safety is Monitored in Canada (PDF)
• Vaccine Regulatory Approval Process in Canada (PDF)

• Infectious Disease Protocol, Appendix B (PDF)
• Ontario AEFI Reporting Form (PDF)
• Adverse Events of Special Interest (AESI) for COVID-19 Vaccine Surveillance (PDF)

• Tracking Adverse Events Following Immunization (AEFI) for COVID-19 Vaccines in Canada