May 27, 2021 Vol. 21, No. 21
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Guigue From GREC, Putnam From SHS, Weichenthal From NAEC, All Win Student Achiever Awards By Jeff Green (with information supplied by the LDSB) he Limestone District School Board (LDSB) of Trustees honoured 11 secondary students who are graduating year with 2021 Limestone Student Achievers Awards at its regular meeting May 19. Among the 11 are 3 from schools in Frontenac County and Addington Highlands. Diana Weichenthal, a student at North Addington Education Centre in Cloyne, was recognized for consistently demonstrating “superior skills, attitude, and work ethic” according to an LDSB release. She has received multiple academic proficiency awards in her school, has maintained a high overall grade average, and has been the recipient of the PEARL award for participation, enthusiasm, attitude, responsibility, and leadership at NAEC. During COVID, Diana has helped to promote school activities aimed at creating a sense of normalcy in her school. Grace Guigue, a student at Granite Ridge Education Centre, has been an honour roll student for four years, and currently has a staggering 98% average. She has been active in several sports, and serves on student council, the prom and spirit committees. During COVID she initiated a holiday card/ messages campaign for a local senior’s residence. Annika Putnam, a student at Sydenham High School, has received excellence and honour roll certificates and has maintained grades over 95%. As the rural student trustee for 2 years, and chair of the InterSchool Council, she participated as a student interviewer for the “Who Do You Know” 2020 graduation project. She is a
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2021 lImestone School Board Student Achievers: Grace Guigue, Granite Ridge Education Centre; Diana Weichenthal, North Addington Education Centre, Anika Putnam, Sydenham High School.
leader for the Catalyst Leo Lions Club, and volunteers in her community “The Limestone Student Achievers Award recognize outstanding achievements of secondary students whose exceptional accomplishments merit recognition beyond the separate categories of awards at the school level. Recipients should have demonstrated exemplary achievement in all three categories: leadership; positive attitude, energy, and school spirit; and academic standing,” said a release from LDSB accompanying the awards. LDSB Board Chair Suzanne Ruttan said
the achievements of these exemplary students make our schools better. "These students inspire their fellow students, staff and community members alike. This award recognizes their exemplary contributions to strategic priorities of wellness, collaboration, and innovation in supporting others during the school year." Each student will receive a medal, a framed award certificate and a lapel pin. Their names will be recorded on a plaque and displayed in the Barry C. O’Connor Board Room at the Education Centre. Director of Education Krishna Burra said
the Limestone Student Achievers presentation is a highlight of Board Meeting calendar for both Trustees and staff. "These students are truly bright lights in an otherwise very challenging year. Their contributions to our strategic priorities of wellness, collaboration, and innovation in supporting others during the school year is exemplary," he said. "Regardless of where these students are headed after graduation, it is clear they will continue to make a positive and significant impact, and forever be wonderful ambassadors of the Limestone District School Board." ■
Beating The Stale Date – The Return Of The Astrazeneca Pharmacy Pilot Project
By Jeff Green t might seem like a long time ago, but it has been just over ten weeks since the commencement of pharmacy based AstraZeneca vaccine rollout, that was targeted at the narrow cohort of the 60-64 year olds. Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington was one of three districts that was chosen for the pilot, along with the COVID hotspot regions of Toronto and Windsor. The parameters of the rollout were challenging for independent, rural pharmacies because each participating pharmacy received the same amount of vaccine, 550 doses. It did not matter if the pharmacy was a large Shoppers Drugmart or Walmart pharmacy in Toronto or a small pharmacy in Harrowsmith or Northbrook, they had to commit to using every dose by April 1, when the vaccine was no longer usable. Among the dozen or so pharmacies in KFL&A, who participated in the pilot project, there were four in rural Frontenac and Lennox and Addington; Tobia Guardian in Northbrook, and the Sharbot Lake,
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Harrowsmith, and Inverary Pharmasave stores. The impact of the pilot project on the vaccination statistics in the region, is graphically depicted on the vaccination dashboard at KFLAPH. Over 2,000 people were vaccinated in the region, in each of the 8 days, between March 12 and March 19, with a peak of 3725 on March 16. There have only been 2 other days when 2,000 or more people in KFL&A have been vaccinated since then. Since the pilot program was open to 60 to 64 year olds, who live anywhere in Ontario, many of those who got their AstraZeneca shot, during that time period, were travelers from outside the region. It does demonstrate the local capacity to vaccinate when pharmacies are engaged. In a media call on Friday, May 21, Kieran Moore, the medical officer of health for KFL&A, said “we are committed to keeping our fridges empty in KFL&A. We are receiving 10,000 shots of Pfizer each week for the next two weeks and maybe more after that,
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and other vaccine as well. Without pharmacy and primary care partners, in addition to our mass vaccination clinics in Kingston and Napanee, we are prepared to deliver 20,000 vaccines per week.” Moore also talked about the second dose of AstraZeneca for those who received their first dose during the pharmacy pilot project between March 10 and March 19. Since March, new rules for inoculation, with AstraZeneca, have been introduced several time. Cases of cases of blood clotting, always described as “rare” by health science officials in Canada and around the world, have been experienced in some cases, mostly after their first inoculation. AstraZeneca is only being administered as a second dose in Ontario at the present time, and in addition to that there is a supply, 55,000 doses in Ontario, that will be stale dated at the end of May. On Thursday, May 20, the Ontario Ministry of Health said that people who received a first dose of AstraZeneca between March 10 and March 19 can shorten the gap between
the first and second dose to 10 weeks, from the recommended 12. In order to do this, however, those who received their dose during that time frame are required to provide an attestation confirming they are choosing to receive the vaccine early. Doctor Moore said Public Health will be handling the distribution of the soon to be stale dated AstraZeneca supply that is earmarked for independent pharmacies in the region, and that the supply was expected on Saturday, May 22. “We will get the vaccine delivered early next week,” said Moore on Friday The four rural pharmacies have been asked how much vaccine they expect to be able to administer before the end of May. “It is a hard question to answer,” said Eric Tobia of Northbrook Pharmasave, “we want to make sure that any vaccine that we receive ends up in someone's arm, but I can't book people in until I know for sure when the
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