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By Chris Brown

10 clinics to start, to expand in May

Physician clinics to start offering COVID vaccines in pilot program

Apr 14, 2021 | 10:48 AM

Ten physician clinics across the province will be able to administer COVID-19 vaccinations to eligible patients in a pilot program.

The pilot will begin April 19 and test the most effective ways to transport, book and administer the vaccine through community physician clinics. The program will be expanded in May based on what is learned from the pilot program.

Two clinics in each AHS zone will participate in the pilot phase. Participating clinics will contact patients and handle appointment bookings directly.

Exact locations will not be publicly posted during the pilot phase to prevent patient care at these clinics from being affected by public interest, says the government in a release. A complete list of participating clinics will be posted online when the rollout expands next month.

Dr. Paul Boucher, president of the Alberta Medical Association, community-based physicians have been playing a key role in caring for patients throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

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“Albertans have a strong connection to their family physicians and look to them to help inform important decisions about their health, such as vaccination,” Boucher says in a release. “The vaccination of all eligible Albertans is a monumental task and leveraging all our collective resources will be essential in getting this done efficiently. We hope that this pilot effort will lead to significant expansion in vaccine capacity through participating community physician offices.”

Officials have been working to incorporate the clinics into the provincial rollout as vaccine supply increases.

Each participating clinic will initially receive 200 doses of the Moderna vaccine. Clinics will contact their patients who are eligible for vaccination.