Non-frontline staff at Toronto hospitals reportedly receiving COVID-19 vaccine

Some questions are now being raised after Toronto hospital staff who don’t directly deal with patients have received the COVID-19 vaccine.

A leaked email from the University Health Network on Sunday, seen by the Toronto Star and Globe and Mail, revealed it had secured a limited number of vaccines from Newmarket’s Southlake Regional Health Centre and was offering them to all staff, including researchers.

The Pfizer COVID-19 shot must be used within six hours of being thawed and prepared, sometimes leaving hospitals to scramble to find recipients when there are extra doses, which is reportedly what happened in Newmarket.

While most hospitals tell the Toronto Star they’ve so far only been vaccinating frontline staff, Michael Garron Hospital said it is now offering doses to all staff, including executives.

A spokesperson for the east end hospital says they’re following the province’s guidelines for how to prioritize vaccinations, and has already vaccinated all long-term care residents in homes it supports.

Kerry Bowman, a bioethicist at the University of Toronto, tells the Toronto Star that offering the vaccine to non-frontline staff is a “clear ethical violation” that should be investigated.