Indigenous-focused COVID-19 immunization clinic opens in Calgary
A new large-scale COVID-19 immunization clinic is addressing barriers to health care for Indigenous people by putting community and culture first.
The urban clinic opened its doors Wednesday at the Best Western Premier Calgary Plaza Hotel & Conference Centre in the city's northeast.
It is the second clinic to open thanks to a coalition of Indigenous-led organizations, including the Aboriginal Friendship Centre of Calgary, Siksika Health Services, Okaki and other local partners.
The collective opened an immunization clinic dedicated to Indigenous seniors last month. More than 400 doses of vaccine were administered over three weeks, averaging about 20 shots per day.
The Phase 2 clinic will be able to deliver eight times the number of shots daily to any eligible Albertans, but with a focus on Indigenous locals.
Dr. Lindsay Crowshoe, a family physician and professor in the University of Calgary's faculty of medicine, said creating a culturally safe and anti-racist space under the lens of decolonization helps address inequalities in health care.
“The question for me is, in its absence, what would it be like as an Indigenous person if we all funnelled through the same porthole and were jockeying with everybody else (for vaccines)?” said Crowshoe.
“There is a whole host of systemic and structural issues that get in the way that prioritize everybody else in front of Indigenous people.”
Crowshoe said the prevalence of racism and bias toward Indigenous people influences access to care, which is why opening an Indigenous-focused clinic helps address lingering fears, mistrust and hesitancy.
“The idea here is if you can facilitate a safe space, access is enhanced, trust is enhanced,” he said, adding the innovative model should be replicated across Canada.
Tracy Balash, a spokeswoman for the project, said the only difference between the original clinic and the second phase clinic is eligible people won't be contacted directly to book vaccine appointments, which can be done online.
“In that clinic, it was smaller, so we were really able to go the extra mile in terms of contacting people directly and walking them through exactly what they should be experiencing when they come to the clinic,” said Balash.
She said volunteers from Sobeys and Safeway pharmacies, graduate nurses from the University of Calgary and Alberta Dental Association and College members will help with vaccinations. A youth group from Siksika First Nation is also volunteering to direct traffic at the site.
“It's just been a tremendous effort of partners that have just come together to get shots in arms,” said Balash.
Crowshoe stressed that COVID-19 vaccines are safe and can help everyone return to a sense of normalcy.
“For Indigenous people, the disconnect is especially hard because we come from a community that's really reliant and focused on relationships, and those relationships have to be honoured and fostered,” he said. “With these shots, we can get back to that.”
First doses of the Moderna vaccine will be administered at the clinic between April 14 and 23.
To book an appointment, visit www.bookyourvisit.ca/indigenousclinic