Prepared By:
Cathy Bennett, Public Heath Emergency Preparedness Coordinator
Date:
April 1, 2019
Subject:
Distribution of Potassium Iodide (KI) Pills
Background:
The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit (WECHU), in collaboration with the Community Emergency Management Coordinators, has been working to ensure that all residents within the primary and secondary zone of the Enrico Fermi 2 Nuclear Generating Station are prepared in case of a nuclear emergency. According to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), all nuclear installations must ensure that KI pills are pre-distributed and that pre-distribution includes a public education plan. Since the Enrico Fermi 2 Nuclear Generating Station is not regulated by the CNSC, the responsibility for KI distribution falls on the WECHU, the Municipalities of Windsor and Essex County, and the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care.
The Potassium Iodide (KI) Distribution Plan includes three phases.
Phase one of the plan focused on increasing the basic knowledge of nuclear emergency preparedness in the primary zone residents of Windsor and Essex County (WEC), as well as the distribution of KI Pills to all residential households in the primary zone and on Boblo Island. Phase one was launched on April 26, 2018 with a media release event, news release, social media campaign, and advertising in the Amherstburg River Town Times. All residential property owners identified as living in the primary zone of Amherstburg and on Boblo Island (approximately 388) received a letter, inviting them to attend information and pick-up session at the Libro Centre in Amherstburg either on May 7th and 8th, 2018. These events were co-hosted by staff from WECHU, and staff from the Amherstburg Fire Department. One hundred and forty-seven KI Pill Kits were distributed at these two sessions. Following consultation with the Amherstburg Fire Department, two additional KI pick-up sessions were scheduled on Saturday, July 21st at Amherst Point, and on Saturday, August 11th at the Boblo Island Ferry Terminal. The Public Health Emergency Preparedness Coordinator and staff from the Amherstburg Fire Department distributed 27 KI Pill Kits at each of these sessions. Approximately 52% of the identified primary zone residents received their KI Pill Kits at the end of phase one of the KI Distribution Plan.
Phase two of the KI Distribution Plan focuses on the distribution of KI Pills to residents of the secondary zone of WEC who wish to have them in their households. Based on experiences from other jurisdictions, it was anticipated that approximately 10% of the secondary zone households would request KI Pills. The communication campaign began with a media advisory on October 11th, 2018 and a press conference on October 15th, 2018. The campaign included 4 weeks of radio advertising and billboards in the Windsor area, print advertisements in the Windsor Star and Amherstburg River Town Times, Windsor Star on-line, and web information and registration on the WECHU website. The KI Distribution Plan for the secondary zone promoted the completion of an on-line KI Pill request form and the selection of a pick-up date and location by WEC residents. In consultation with the Community Emergency Management Coordinators (CEMC) of Windsor and Essex County, 23 individual KI Pill Kit pick-up events were scheduled from November 3rd to December 5th at multiple locations across Windsor and Essex County. Venues included recreation centres, fire stations, arenas, municipal offices, civic centers, and the WECHU Windsor office site. The Public Health Emergency Preparedness Coordinator attended all sessions with the assistance of WECHU clerical staff, the CEMCs and Fire Department staff from multiple municipalities. At the completion of the pick-up sessions, 2748 KI Pill Kits were distributed through this strategy. Approximately 62% of those who registered for pick-up sessions actually attended their scheduled session; however approximately 500 KI Pill Kits were distributed to “walk-in” residents who had not pre-registered. Since October, secondary zone residents have also had the option of registering for future KI Pill Kit mail-out if they were unable to attend a KI pick-up session. Additionally, secondary zone residents have been able to receive registration assistance by submitting emails and/or by calling the KI Hotline to speak with the Emergency Preparedness Coordinator or clerical staff.
| Total # of KI Pill Kits available to WEC residents | Phase 1: # of KI Pill Kits distributed |
Phase 2: # of KI Pill Kits distributed in 23 pick-up sessions Nov/Dec 2018 |
Phase 3: # of KI Pill Kits on Mail Out List January 2019 Total # of residents who have requested KI Pill Kits to date |
Total # of residents who have requested KI Pill Kits to date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17,000.00* | 201 | 2748 | 3600 | 6549 |
| * minus the KI Pills provided to Chatham-Kent residents | Approximately 39 % of Total KI Pill Kits available |
Additionally, three KI pill kit pick-up sessions were held for the WECHU staff at the Windsor, Essex and Leamington Office locations in February.
Phase two also aims to stock KI Pills (stock bottles) in the schools within the Town of Amherstburg and work with the schoolboards (Public, Catholic, and French) to create policies around KI administration to students in the event of an emergency.
Phase three of the KI Pill Distribution Plan will be focused on the sustainability of the KI Program, including the replacement of pills prior to the expiration date, and the promotion of basic knowledge of nuclear emergency preparedness for WEC residents.
Current Initiatives
Current plans include the preparation for mail out of the KI Pill Kit packages to approximately 3600 WEC residents who have submitted their on-line requests. This group includes those who were unable to attend the pick-up sessions in November and December and/or submitted their request for a future mail out option. Since the KI Pills are sensitive to temperature and must be stored between 15 to 30 degrees Celsius, this mail out is scheduled for the spring of 2019.
A second round of communication campaign began in February/March 2019 that focussed on the target population of younger families with children. Communication strategies included social media, digital, and targeted print advertisements promoting the submission of on-line requests for the KI Pill Kits for mail out.
The list of the current numbers of first responders for emergency services in Windsor and Essex County has been updated to determine the volume of KI Pill Stock bottles required in the event of a nuclear incident. This list includes: fire department staff in 8 municipalities, police services, Ontario Provincial Police in Essex County, Emergency Medical Services for Windsor and Essex County, and the Canadian Coast Guard. Estimates of the required amount of KI Pills to stockpile for evacuation centers has also been determined based on an estimate of 10% of the population of Amherstburg.
There is continued consultation and communication with the CEMC group as the KI Pill Distribution Plan continues in 2019. There is opportunity for further collaboration with municipalities in the distribution of KI Pills at municipal centers.
Windsor and Essex County school board representatives will be contacted by the Public Health Emergency Preparedness Coordinator to request individual meetings to discuss the process of providing stockpiles of Potassium Iodide Pills for four Amherstburg schools: Amherstburg Public, Stella Marais, Ste. Jean Baptiste, and General Amherst High School. An initial presentation regarding the proposed plan for the distribution of Potassium Iodide (KI) Pills in the Amherstburg school setting was completed at the August 23, 2018 WECHU/School Board Liaison Meeting.
WECHU has committed to provide the Chatham-Kent Public Health Unit with sufficient KI Pills to support distribution to 10% of the Chatham-Kent households identified as being within the secondary zone.
Consultation:
The following individuals contributed to this report:
Dr. Wajid Ahmed, Medical Officer of Health
Approved by:
Theresa Marentette