Thousands of Manitoba parents were up bright and early Monday morning for a chance to get COVID-19 vaccination appointments for their kids as bookings for children as young as five opened for the first time.
Parent Jen Shapka was anxiously waiting for this day and her nerves kept her up through the night, she said.
“Thank you, science,” said Shapka, who scheduled an appointment for her 11-year-old. “Manitoba hasn’t always been perfect at everything, but on the whole it’s been very good.”
About 15,000 appointments were booked by 1 p.m. CT out of roughly 125,200 kids age five to 11 in Manitoba, according to provincial vaccine task force medical lead Dr. Joss Reimer.
Reimer stressed this isn’t indicative of overall interest, given there are so many other options available than there were in earlier stages of the campaign.
Health Canada approved the vaccine for kids last week and shipments of the pediatric Pfizer-BioNTech shot arrive in Manitoba Tuesday. In most cases, local officials recommend waiting eight weeks between doses.
Currently, appointments for kids are only bookable at immunization supersites.
Pharmacists and family doctors are expected to start getting doses between Thursday and next Monday, a provincial official said. The Manitoba vaccine finder app will be updated in the coming days to reflect which have doses.
Chris Mendoza is owner of Prairie Health Apothecary pharmacy on St Anne’s Rd. (Trevor Brine/CBC)
Pharmacist Chris Mendoza, who owns Prairie Health Apothecary, said she received numerous calls Monday from parents, despite them having zero doses in hand yet.
She would’ve appreciated more communication from the province.
“It’s a little frustrating,” said Mendoza. “I get the excitement, you know, I have kids and want to get them vaccinated, but we just have to wait until we get them in house.”
Mendoza said she expects high demand for pharmacy appointments since some small children may prefer that setting.
Online glitches, phones tied up
A provincial official said there were minor issues identified shortly after the online booking website launched Monday morning due to “very heavy volumes,” but that those were worked out within 30 minutes. Those calling in experienced long waits and were expected to receive a call back in about two hours due to heavy call demand, the spokesperson added.
The Southern Health region experienced a higher than expected volume of requests for appointments, and some parents initially reported getting appointments into mid-December.
Officials said more appointments have since been opened for as early as Sunday.
Kyle Penner is the associate pastor at Grace Mennonite Church in Steinbach. (Gabrielle Touchette Photography/Province of Manitoba)
The initial hiccup frustrated Kyle Penner but he’s glad the province remedied the issue. Before the snafu, he booked three appointments for his kids at the Steinbach supersite for next Monday.
Despite the demand, Penner said he understands some parents have reservations.
“We really do respect and understand those questions they have,” said Penner, associate pastor at Grace Mennonite Church in Steinbach.”Our doctors were there when our kids were born and they’re their for everything else in between, and this is something we can talk to our doctors about as well.”
Safe and effective
Dr. Marni Hanna, a pediatrician and president of the Manitoba Pediatric Society, said the child shot has about one-third the dose of an adult vaccine, but still stimulates a robust immune response.
“This is going to be a key thing that’s going to help things to get better and help us to move past this,” she told Information Radio guest host Faith Fundal.
Information Radio – MB6:50Now that the federal government has approved Pfizer’s child sized shot for kids — parents can now book appointments
Parents can now book appointments to get their kids the covid-19 vaccine. Guest host Faith Fundal speaks with Dr. Marni Hanna , Pediatrician, President of the Manitoba Pediatric Society and panelist at upcoming Town Hall on November 30 about the safety and the efficacy of the child-sized shot. 6:50
Kids and teens account for the largest proportion of new COVID-19 cases in recent weeks, according to provincial data.
Hanna said the vaccine is safe and effective, and parents can expect the same kind of mild side-effects in their kids that adults may experience the first day or two post-shot, including a sore arm, achy muscles, headaches and fever.
She said the risk of myocarditis, a form of heart inflammation, is higher in the event of a COVID-19 infection than in association with vaccination, plus the condition is treatable.
Reimer said clinical trials in kids showed no serious side effects were detected, including no cases of myocarditis. The vaccine is also nearly 91 per cent effective at preventing infection in kids according to research, Reimer said.
Clinical data on infections also suggests kids generally don’t experience severe COVID-19 outcomes as frequently as adults, though at least 27 Manitoba children ended up in hospital — including seven in intensive care — due to the illness over the pandemic, said Reimer.
Kids can however develop something known as multisystem inflammatory syndrome weeks after an infection, which often requires hospitalization, said Reimer. They can also spread the virus to vulnerable people.
“Every child is surrounded by a village of people and every village of people needs protection,” she said.
‘It’s happening’
That message appeared to resonate with many parents well before Monday.
Shapka had browsers open on her phone and computer when the online booking system opened at 6 a.m. and a group text going with other mothers who were doing the same.
Kidney transplant patient Sophia Silvaamaya, 5, held by her father Pedro Silvaamaya, is vaccinated by a nurse earlier this month at Children’s National Hospital in Washington. The U.S. began vaccination elementary-age kids in early November. (Carolyn Kaster/The Associated Press)
She encountered some glitches when she initially logged on, but those soon resolved and she was able to set an appointment for Thursday.
“We’ve been waiting so long and finally getting the last member of my family.… It’s happening,” she said.
The glitches had Krystal Payne on edge, though she, too, snagged an appointment for her daughter Emby Payne, nine, for Thursday.
Payne’s father lives with them, so the family has taken extra precautions because he is at greater risk.
Emby is the last member of the household who hasn’t been vaccinated. She has been looking forward to her shot and being able to help keep her grandfather safe, her mother said.
“She’s excited to be able to protect him and to just be able to kind of live life a little bit more.”
WATCH | Full news conference on COVID-19 | November 22, 2021:
Manitoba government daily briefing on coronavirus: Nov. 22
4 hours ago
Provincial officials give update on COVID-19 outbreak: Monday, Nov. 22, 2021. 44:37
The Canadian government says it will donate up to 200,000 vaccine doses to fight the mpox outbreak in Congo and other African countries.
It says the donated doses of Imvamune will come from Canada’s existing supply and will not affect the country’s preparedness for mpox cases in this country.
Minister of Health Mark Holland says the donation “will help to protect those in the most affected regions of Africa and will help prevent further spread of the virus.”
Dr. Madhukar Pai, Canada research chair in epidemiology and global health, says although the donation is welcome, it is a very small portion of the estimated 10 million vaccine doses needed to control the outbreak.
Vaccine donations from wealthier countries have only recently started arriving in Africa, almost a month after the World Health Organization declared the mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
A few days after the declaration in August, Global Affairs Canada announced a contribution of $1 million for mpox surveillance, diagnostic tools, research and community awareness in Africa.
On Thursday, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said mpox is still on the rise and that testing rates are “insufficient” across the continent.
Jason Kindrachuk, Canada research chair in emerging viruses at the University of Manitoba, said donating vaccines, in addition to supporting surveillance and diagnostic tests, is “massively important.”
But Kindrachuk, who has worked on the ground in Congo during the epidemic, also said that the international response to the mpox outbreak is “better late than never (but) better never late.”
“It would have been fantastic for us globally to not be in this position by having provided doses a much, much longer time prior than when we are,” he said, noting that the outbreak of clade I mpox in Congo started in early 2023.
Clade II mpox, endemic in regions of West Africa, came to the world’s attention even earlier — in 2022 — as that strain of virus spread to other countries, including Canada.
Two doses are recommended for mpox vaccination, so the donation may only benefit 100,000 people, Pai said.
Pai questioned whether Canada is contributing enough, as the federal government hasn’t said what percentage of its mpox vaccine stockpile it is donating.
“Small donations are simply not going to help end this crisis. We need to show greater solidarity and support,” he said in an email.
“That is the biggest lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic — our collective safety is tied with that of other nations.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
HALIFAX – The Nova Scotia government says it could be months before it reveals how many people are on the wait-list for a family doctor.
The head of the province’s health authority told reporters Wednesday that the government won’t release updated data until the 160,000 people who were on the wait-list in June are contacted to verify whether they still need primary care.
Karen Oldfield said Nova Scotia Health is working on validating the primary care wait-list data before posting new numbers, and that work may take a matter of months. The most recent public wait-list figures are from June 1, when 160,234 people, or about 16 per cent of the population, were on it.
“It’s going to take time to make 160,000 calls,” Oldfield said. “We are not talking weeks, we are talking months.”
The interim CEO and president of Nova Scotia Health said people on the list are being asked where they live, whether they still need a family doctor, and to give an update on their health.
A spokesperson with the province’s Health Department says the government and its health authority are “working hard” to turn the wait-list registry into a useful tool, adding that the data will be shared once it is validated.
Nova Scotia’s NDP are calling on Premier Tim Houston to immediately release statistics on how many people are looking for a family doctor. On Tuesday, the NDP introduced a bill that would require the health minister to make the number public every month.
“It is unacceptable for the list to be more than three months out of date,” NDP Leader Claudia Chender said Tuesday.
Chender said releasing this data regularly is vital so Nova Scotians can track the government’s progress on its main 2021 campaign promise: fixing health care.
The number of people in need of a family doctor has more than doubled between the 2021 summer election campaign and June 2024. Since September 2021 about 300 doctors have been added to the provincial health system, the Health Department said.
“We’ll know if Tim Houston is keeping his 2021 election promise to fix health care when Nova Scotians are attached to primary care,” Chender said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Newfoundland and Labrador‘s chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
Dr. Janice Fitzgerald says that so far this year, the province has recorded 230 confirmed cases of the vaccine-preventable respiratory tract infection, also known as pertussis.
Late last month, Quebec reported more than 11,000 cases during the same time period, while Ontario counted 470 cases, well above the five-year average of 98. In Quebec, the majority of patients are between the ages of 10 and 14.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick has declared a whooping cough outbreak across the province. A total of 141 cases were reported by last month, exceeding the five-year average of 34.
The disease can lead to severe complications among vulnerable populations including infants, who are at the highest risk of suffering from complications like pneumonia and seizures. Symptoms may start with a runny nose, mild fever and cough, then progress to severe coughing accompanied by a distinctive “whooping” sound during inhalation.
“The public, especially pregnant people and those in close contact with infants, are encouraged to be aware of symptoms related to pertussis and to ensure vaccinations are up to date,” Newfoundland and Labrador’s Health Department said in a statement.
Whooping cough can be treated with antibiotics, but vaccination is the most effective way to control the spread of the disease. As a result, the province has expanded immunization efforts this school year. While booster doses are already offered in Grade 9, the vaccine is now being offered to Grade 8 students as well.
Public health officials say whooping cough is a cyclical disease that increases every two to five or six years.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick’s acting chief medical officer of health expects the current case count to get worse before tapering off.
A rise in whooping cough cases has also been reported in the United States and elsewhere. The Pan American Health Organization issued an alert in July encouraging countries to ramp up their surveillance and vaccination coverage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2024.
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