Last revised on October 31, 2022
The long-term care home (LTCH) and retirement home (RH) sectors are critical stakeholders in the response to COVID-19. Residents of these institutions are particularly vulnerable to severe illness and death from COVID-19. Efforts to keep COVID-19 out of these institutions, early detection of COVID-19 cases and COVID-19 vaccination in institutions are vital to COVID-19 prevention and control.
On this page:
- Chief Medical Officer of Health Directives
- Ontario Ministry of Health & Public Health Ontario – Guidance and Resources
- Memorandums
- Vaccination
- Testing
- Personal Protective Equipment
- COVID-19 Signage
1. Chief Medical Officer of Health Directives
2. Ontario Ministry of Health and Public Health Ontario Guidance Documents and Resources
- COVID-19: Visiting Long Term Care Homes
- Minister’s Directive: Long-term care home COVID-19 immunization policy
- Retirement Homes Policy to Implement Directive #3
- COVID-19: Long-term care home surveillance testing and access to homes
- Ministry of Health COVID-19 Screening Tool for Long-Term Care Homes and Retirement Homes
- Chapter 1: Storage and Handling of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 Vaccines
- Chapter 2: Storage and Handling of Moderna COVID-19 Vaccines
3. Memorandums
- Memorandum to Long Term Care Homes Sector (March 9, 2020): COVID-19 Updates (PDF)
- Ministry of Health Memorandum to Long-Term Care Homes, Retirement Homes, Supportive Housing, Hospices and other congregate care settings: COVID-19 - Visitors (March 13, 2020) (PDF - 165 KB)
4. Vaccination
As part of the current efforts to reach increased coverage targets in the province to protect individuals and the population, it is important to take every opportunity to vaccinate. All LTCH and RHs who have the clinical capacity to immunize are eligible to order COVID-19 vaccine for administration to eligible staff and residents within their facility.
Vaccine Ordering Process
LTCH and RH operators can order vaccine and vaccination supplies by completing the COVID-19 Vaccine Order Form.
OPH will arrange delivery of vaccine on the date indicated on the COVID-19 Vaccine Order Form submitted. Deliveries can only be scheduled Monday through Friday between 8 am to 5 pm.
Note: Requests for vaccine must be submitted a minimum of two business days prior to the planned vaccine administration date and are based on vaccine availability.
LTCH and RH that require immunization support
OPH encourages all homes to explore leveraging partnerships used for the flu vaccine, to see if they have capacity to support with COVID-19 vaccines as well.
For LTCH and RH homes with limited capacity, OPH will continue to offer on-site training for staff and work with the home to collaboratively run a clinic. The training provided will help increase capacity for the home to immunize residents who may require their initial or subsequent booster doses in the future.
To request OPH support for a clinic (including staff training):
- Ensure you have completed the COVID-19 Vaccine Consent Form for each resident who has a POA.
- Once above forms are complete, then submit your facility information via the Long Term Care and Retirement Home COVID-19 OPH Clinic and Training Request Form.
COVaxON requirements and educational resources
COVaxON
COVaxON is Ontario’s provincial vaccination database for COVID-19 vaccines. All doses of COVID-19 vaccine administered must be documented in the COVaxON system. Please ensure that your facility has active access to COVaxON prior to the day of your vaccination event.
COVaxON Training Support for Ottawa-area Homes |
A COVax SharePoint Site was developed for training purposes and gives COVax users who are registered under OPH’s authorized organization (AO) access to various COVax training materials, including demo session recordings, weekly provincial go-live training schedules, learning modules, job aids, tailored user training roadmaps, system change and so much more. Should you require Training support and access to the SharePoint please contact covaxon@ottawa.ca. |
COVaxON Concierge Service for Ottawa-area Homes |
Additional on-boarding & training assistance is available exclusively to new COVax users. Should you require additional support, please fill out the COVax Concierge Service Request Form and someone from the OPH COVax Support Team will contact you. PLEASE NOTE: This mailbox is monitored Monday- Friday between 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. |
COVaxON Technical Support |
The provincial COVaxON portal will assist with COVaxON Application and User Management support. Contact information is as follows: Phone: (416) 637-8672 or Toll Free 1-888-333-0640. Email: COvaxonsupport@ontario.ca. The support hours are 7:00 am to 8:00 pm, 7 days a week. |
COVID-19 Immunization Information for Immunizers
Below are links to COVID-19 vaccine-relevant resources for immunizers. These include guidance for health care providers related to administration, special recommendations as well as anaphylaxis and adverse event management. Please visit the Ministry of Health COVID-19 Website for additional information.
Pfizer-BioNTech
- Pfizer-BioNTech’s Quick Guide to Administration of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine
- Ministry of Health Administration of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine factsheet
Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine
- Moderna’s Quick Guide to Administration of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine
- Ministry of Health Administration of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine factsheet
- Advisory: Importation of COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna with up to 15 Doses per Vial and English-only Vial and Carton Labels (US-Labelled Supply)
Mixed COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine Schedules
Printed confirmation of vaccination
Do you have staff or residents that require a printed confirmation of their vaccination status? Individuals can review and print a confirmation that they have received their vaccine through the Ontario COVID-19 Vaccination portal.
Adverse Events
- Management of Anaphylaxis Following Immunization in the Community
- Anaphylaxis and other Acute Reactions following Vaccination: Canadian Immunization Guide
Additional Resources
COVID-19 Vaccination Recommendations for Special Populations |
Guidance document from the Ministry of Health outlining currently available scientific knowledge for COVID-19 vaccination in special populations and expert clinician advice. |
MOHLTC COVID-19 Vaccine Promotion Toolkit |
A toolkit to help boost vaccination rates in LTCH and RH. The kit contains a welcome letter, posters, fact sheets, tips for holding effective conversations, an FAQ, and more. The toolkit is available in English, French and 10 other languages. |
5.Testing
- COVID-19 Provincial Testing Guidance Update
- Need to be tested? - Learn more about testing.
- Facility specimen collection request form
6. Personal Protective Equipment
- Putting on Full Personal Protective Equipment - Public Health Ontario Video
- Guidance for mask use in long-term care homes and retirement home
7. COVID-19 Signage
- OPH Outbreak signage - We are experiencing an outbreak [PDF 138 kb]
- Signage for LTCH - Attention Patients! English (PDF)
- Signage for LTCH - Attention Visitors! English (PDF)
- Signage for LTCH - Stop! English (PDF)
- Signage for RH - the following signages are included:
- We are experiencing an outbreak of COVID-19 (page 1)
- We are currently free from COVID-19 (page 2)
- We are currently free from COVID-19 (pages 4-5)
- Welcoming visitors to your home during COVID-19 (page 3)
OPH has sent several RAVE Alerts to long-term care homes and retirement homes which can be found on the Public Health Alerts, Epidemiology and Resources on COVID-19 page.
To report an outbreak for any disease during regular business hours, or for more information, call 613-580-2424 ext. 26325, or in the evening, on weekends or holidays, call 3-1-1 and ask to speak with the Public Health Inspector on-call.
Contact information
Provincial Vaccine Information Line
- 7 days a week, from 8 am to 8 pm
- Call if you have questions about Ontario's COVID-19 vaccination program.
- Service is available in multiple languages.
- Telephone: 1-888-999-6488
- TTY: 1-866-797-0007
Ottawa Public Health Vaccine Booking Line
- Monday to Friday, from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm
- Translation is available in multiple languages
- Telephone: 613-691-5505
Emergency Services
- If you are in distress (e.g., significant trouble breathing, chest pain, fainting or have a significant worsening of any chronic disease symptoms), do not go to the Assessment Centre or a COVID-19 Care clinic. Go to the nearest Emergency Department or call 9-1-1.
How to access help during COVID-19
- 211 Ontario can help you find financial and social support during COVID-19
- Telephone: 2-1-1
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