Medical Advisory: Network/Fax Outage & Interim Reporting

All program phone lines and the majority of program fax lines have been restored and will replace the temporary solutions used during the cyber incident. Please see below for important updates on reporting and communications with Hamilton Public Health Services.

Changes since the April 30 advisory include:

• New fax and phone numbers for most programs.

Current Situation

• Majority of communications systems are fully functional and have returned to pre-incident status. The following fax lines are still using a temporary solution and will be updated via a future advisory when the issue has been resolved:
  • Reportable Diseases Fax Line (844-444-0295)
  • Sexual Health Program Fax Line (844-444-0295)
  • STI Medication Orders Fax Line (905-546-3472)
• The City of Hamilton website continues to be updated with current information for reporting and communicating with Hamilton Public Health Services.

Reportable Diseases

Please report any suspect or confirmed cases of Diseases of Public Health Significance specified in O. Reg. 135/18 Designation of Diseases under the Health Protection and Promotion Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. H.7.

For laboratories, please fax ALL reports of Diseases of Public Health Significance to 844-444-0295 (note: this is a temporary fax line). In addition to faxing ALL reports of Diseases of Public Health Significance, please follow these instructions for reporting:

• During regular business hours Monday to Friday 8:30am to 4:30pm – fax or verbally report by phone diseases that require immediate and same-day reporting by calling 905-546-2063.
• After hours, Weekends, and Statutory Holidays – verbally report by phone diseases that require immediate and same-day reporting by calling 905-546-2489(CITY) to speak with the on-call Public Health Nurse or Public Health Inspector.
• More information on reporting diseases of public health significance and associated timelines can be found at: https://www.hamilton.ca/people-programs/publichealth/health-care-professionals/reporting-infectious-diseases

Contacting the Infectious Disease, Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) and Outbreak Management Programs to report outbreaks or for general inquiries:

• During regular business hours Monday-Friday 8:30 am to 4:30 pm please call 905-546-2063.
• After hours, Weekends, and Statutory Holidays - call 905-546-2489 (CITY) to speak with the on-call Public Health Nurse or Public Health Inspector. Please follow the after-hours procedure for diseases and emergencies that require reporting after-hours.

Rabies exposures, bites or other animal contact incidents

• During regular business hours Monday-Friday 8:30am – 4:30 pm - to report an incident, please fax 905-546-2787. To request vaccine during business hours please call 905-546-2424 Ext 3327.
• After Hours and Weekends- to report a rabies incident outside of business hours please fax 905-546-2787. To request vaccine after hours/weekends please call
  the City of Hamilton Environmental Public Health Inspector on-call at 905-546-2489(CITY).

Contacting the Sexual Health Team

• During regular business hours Monday-Friday 8:30am – 4:30pm, please call 905-528-5894. NOTE: if you are attempting to submit documents with personal health information (i.e. surveillance reports), please send by fax to 844-444-0295, do not send via email (note: this is a temporary fax line).

STI Medication Ordering:

• Please send STI Medication Order Forms by fax to 905-546-3472 (note: this is a temporary process).

Vaccine Ordering

• Please send Vaccine Order Forms by fax to 905-546-3472.
• For questions regarding Vaccine orders please use the following to contact the Vaccine Inventory team:
  • Email: [email protected]
  • Phone: 905-546-2424 ext. 2161

Adverse Event following Immunization (AEFI)

• Adverse Events Following Immunization (AEFIs) can be reported to Hamilton Public Health in the following ways:
  • By fax to the reportable disease fax line: 844-444-0295 (note: this is a temporary process).
  • By calling a public health nurse at 905-546-2424 ext. 7556

Vaccine Storage and Handling

• To report a Cold Chain excursion or to talk to our Cold Chain Nurses, please call 905-546-2424 ext. 4777.

Healthy Babies Healthy Children (HBHC) referrals

• Please fax completed HBHC referrals to the HBHC Program at 905-546-3592 or call the Health Connections phoneline at 905-546-3550 Monday through Friday 8:30 am to 4:30 pm.