Efforts to vaccinate Chatham-Kent residents against COVID-19 appear to be continuing to pay off.
With local vaccine freezers emptied once again, the mass vaccination clinic at the John D. Bradley Centre in Chatham will be closed until the next shipment arrives.
The clinic was closed late Friday and is expected to open back up on Tuesday. Mobile outreach vaccination clinics are set to continue.
"Thanks to the hard work of the [Chatham-Kent vaccination team,] we have used up our current supply as quickly and safely as we can, and have completed our vaccinations for this week," read a Facebook post by Chatham-Kent Public Health.
Clinic hours of operation will continue to fluctuate as vaccine supplies continue to be limited.
The health unit recently changed the time frame of when second doses of the vaccine can be administered, based on recommendations by upper levels of government.
Vaccine doses can now wait 16 weeks between doses.
On Thursday, Chatham-Kent's Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Colby said about 10 per cent of the local population has been given at least one dose of the vaccine. At that point, just over 11,500 residents had received a shot.
According to Colby, that's the highest rate in the country with the exception of the three territories, which have a different system.
On Sunday, Premier Doug Ford announced a centralized online and telephone vaccination booking system for Ontario, however, health officials in Chatham-Kent will continue to use the municipality's dedicated vaccination phone line for the time being.
"This will give us time to better study the new provincial system and determine when to integrate it into our operations to ensure that our vaccination program continues to run as efficiently as possible," Public Health Spokesperson Jeff Moco said in an emailed statement.
Eligible residents can book vaccines in Chatham-Kent by calling 519-351-1010.