We know that the past few years have made it difficult for families to keep up with the recommended vaccinations needed to protect children and youth from disease and to keep them healthy.
In response, The Population and Public Health Working Group of the Kids Come First Health Team joined together to connect children and youth to the care they need. The Kids Come First: Vaccinate and Up-to-Date campaign is here to make it easier for children and youth to get their routine vaccines with available appointments at easy-to-find clinics in the Eastern Ontario region.
Families, caregivers, and patients will be able to start booking routine vaccine appointments using the Kids Come First ClinicFlow booking page starting on May 15, 2023!
To book an appointment, your child or youth:
Needs to live and/or go to daycare or school in Ontario; and
Is due for recommended vaccinations; and
Does not have a family physician or pediatrician or a Primary Health Care nurse practitioner (PHC-NP) or cannot easily access see their family physician, pediatrician, or PHC-NP.
Note that an OHIP card is not required to book an appointment.
Why are these clinics so important?
In the Eastern Ontario region, there is a large backlog of missed doses of childhood vaccines for children under the age of 17. These vaccines protect against diseases like measles, mumps, rubella, polio, pertussis, diphtheria, tetanus, meningitis, and chicken pox.
Getting vaccinated will help keep children and families healthy and help prevent disease outbreaks. Staying healthy will also keep everyone in school, work, and play settings where they can thrive and grow.
Who is involved in this project?
Members of the Population and Public Health working group of the Kids Come First Health Team are healthcare providers and organizations who are working together to improve the health of the entire population while reducing the health inequities among population groups.
Together, Public Health Units*, Community Health Centres (CHCs), and physician-led clinics are working with CANImmunize, an Ottawa-based technology company specializing in immunization software, to make it easier for families to book appointments for routine pediatric vaccinations and address the current vaccination gap.
Participating members include:
Centretown Community Health Centre
ConnectWell Community Health
East Ottawa Kids Care Clinic
Ottawa Public Health
Rainbow Valley Community Health Centre
Renfrew County and District Health Unit
Restore Medical Clinic
Somerset West Community Health Centre
South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre
*The Eastern Ontario Health Unit and the Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit are members of the Kids Come First Population and Public Health working group. If you live in the
Eastern Ontario Health Unit area, please call 1-800-267-7120 and book your appointment.
Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit area, please call 1-844-369-1234 and book your appointment.
Frequently Asked Questions (accordion format)
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Can my child or youth go to a participating clinic in the Kids Come First: Vaccinate and Up-to-Date campaign and use ClinicFlow if they already have a family physician, or pediatrician, or PHC-NP?
The Kids Come First: Vaccinate and Up-to-Date campaign was established to serve children and youth living and/or going to school or daycare in Eastern Ontario, and who do not currently have a family physician, pediatrician, or PHC-NP.
If your child or youth has family physician, pediatrician, or PHC-NP, please schedule an immunization visit with them. |
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Does my child or youth need an OHIP card to make an appointment?
No, your child does not need an OHIP card to make an appointment. If you have OHIP or another provincial health card number, please use it to register and bring the health card to the vaccine appointment. |
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Do I need to create another log-in to get an appointment?
No, you do not need to create a new log-in.
If this is the first time you are using ClinicFlow to book an appointment, a new patient file will be created for your child or youth. You will need to enter basic demographic information about your child or youth in the booking page to create this file.
When booking future appointments, you will only need to enter the same basic demographic information and ClinicFlow will “match” the new appointment with your existing patient file. |
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How do I book an appointment if I am bilingual or want to receive services in French?
A clinic name will appear in both English and French if they provide services in both languages.
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Do I need an appointment to visit a Kids Come First: Vaccinate and Up to DateUp-to-Date clinic?
You do not need an appointment, but priority will be given to those with an appointment. To avoid waiting or having to return on a different day, please book an appointment online. It is really easy!
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What if I don’t know or am not sure which vaccines my child or youth needs?
Don’t worry, that is what the Vaccine History Assessment appointments are for! These longer appointments allow time for clinicians to help parents, caregivers and patients review their vaccine history and figure out what vaccines are needed.
Newcomers to Canada and Ontario are encouraged to book an initial Vaccination History Assessment appointment. Please bring your child’s vaccine history card to the appointment. Please note that the vaccine history needs to be in either English or French. When possible, the clinician will administer the needed vaccines at the same appointment.
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What if I am having trouble booking an appointment online?
If you are having issues booking online or have other questions, you can call one of the Public Health Units who will help to book your appointment.
If you live in the Eastern Ontario Health Unit area, please book your appointment by calling 1-800-267-7120.
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What is CANImmunize and ClinicFlow?
CANImmunize has developed ClinicFlow, which is an easy-to-use, best-in-class, end-to-end immunization system that allows parents to easily book appointments and send immunization information automatically to their public health unit.
ClinicFlow is a web portal. It is not an application, so people do not need to download an app. The ClinicFlow booking page for Eastern Ontario is here and the patient portal where families/patients can get their vaccine receipt is here.
ClinicFlow was successfully used by three provincial/territorial governments to support their mass immunization programs, including COVID-19 and Influenza appointment bookings and record keeping. This is the first time public health units and local community clinics have worked together to use ClinicFlow for routine childhood vaccinations in this innovative way. Click here for ClinicFlow product information: https://www.canimmunize.ca/en/home#clinic-flow
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How is ClinicFlow related to CANImmunize app?
Parents and caregivers are encouraged to download the CANImmunize App. This will allow you to:
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Additional Resources
Some children may feel uneasy or afraid of getting their vaccine(s), but there are a few resources that can help to ease their anxieties and improve their experience:
CHEO
Immunize.ca –
CARD Game for kids (interactive)
CANImmunize Knowledge Centre – Importance of Immunization for Kids!
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