The vaccine is considered to be safe, though some mild side effects are possible, including redness or pain at the injection site, fatigue, fever or chills.
Author of the article:
Jason Magder • Montreal Gazette
Publishing date:
Feb 24, 2021 • 0 minutes ago • 4 minute read
A woman receives her COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination clinic in Montreal’s Olympic Stadium on Tuesday, February 23, 2021.Photo by Paul Chiasson /The Canadian Press
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Quebec’s vaccine efforts are moving from seniors’ residences to mass vaccination sites, as the campaign to immunize the general population is set to begin next week.
The province will receive its largest shipment of vaccine doses to date starting Monday, expecting about 100,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine per week for the next six weeks. That will allow a significant portion of those most at risk of serious complications to be immunized against COVID-19.
The goal of the vaccination campaign is for 75 per cent of the overall population to be immunized.
Here are the answers to a few questions about the vaccine and how to get it.
Q: How soon can I get the vaccine and how do I book an appointment?
A: Vaccines will be administered to people 85 and older starting Monday. People in that age group can book their appointments online starting Thursday, Feb. 25 at 8 a.m. using the site quebec.ca/vaccincovid, or by calling 1-877-644-4545.
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Q: If I provide care to someone in the at-risk group, can I also get vaccinated?
A:Quebec’s website for vaccine information, which is also available in English, states that anyone who provides care to someone in that age group for at least three days per week and is 70 or older can also be vaccinated.
Q: Where can I get vaccinated?
A: There are several mass vaccination sites set up throughout the province, including the island of Montreal. When you book an appointment, you will be directed to a vaccination centre closest to your home.
Q: I live alone and have reduced mobility. Will someone come to visit me to give me the vaccine?
A: Unfortunately not. For now, the vaccines must all be stored in the same spot and can’t be moved around very much. That’s why those who have mobility issues are urged to find a caregiver or family member who can bring them to one of the mass vaccination sites. The local health authorities are also trying to figure out other ways to bring people with mobility issues to the vaccine sites.
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Q: If I’m not in the first at-risk group, when will I get vaccinated?
A: There are about 200,000 Quebecers who are 85 or older and don’t live in CHSLDs or private seniors’ homes. It will take approximately two weeks for that age group to be vaccinated. After that has been completed, other at-risk groups will be vaccinated according to the following priority list:
People 80 or older
People 70 to 79 years old
People 60 to 69 years old
Adults under 60 who have a chronic disease or health problem that increases the risk of complications from COVID‑19
Adults under 60 who do not have a chronic disease or health problem that increases the risk of complications, but who provide essential services and have contact with users
The rest of the adult population
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No priority has yet been set for children or pregnant women.
Q: Is the vaccine safe, and how effective is it?
A: The vaccine is considered to be safe, though some mild side effects are possible, including redness or pain at the injection site, fatigue, fever or chills. The vaccine is considered to be 80 per cent effective with the first dose, according to the most recent observations by the province’s health authorities. Pfizer and Moderna both claim a 94 to 95 per cent immunity level when two doses of their vaccines are administered. The province plans to immunize as many people as possible with the first of two doses, and those who receive a first dose will get a second dose within 90 days.
Q: Once I get the vaccine, can I go back to normal life and disregard sanitary measures?
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A: Unfortunately, you will have to keep your mask handy, even after getting the shot, for two reasons: firstly, because the vaccines are so new, there is no way to know for sure if you can still carry the virus and pass it on to others after being immunized. There’s also the matter of the 80 per cent immunity on the first dose, which means that until the general population is immunized, there’s still a chance you can be infected even after being vaccinated. Immunity seems to kick in about two to three weeks after the shot is administered.
Q: Is it mandatory to be vaccinated against COVID-19?
A: It isn’t mandatory, but the province strongly recommends as many people as possible get vaccinated.
Q: You haven’t answered all my questions. Where can I go to get more information about the vaccines and COVID-19 in general?
A: More information is available at the public health department’s COVID-19 site, quebec.ca/coronavirus.
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Alberta Health Services (AHS) has confirmed a case of measles in Edmonton, and is advising the public that the individual was out in public while infectious.
Measles is an extremely contagious disease that is spread easily through the air, and can only be prevented through immunization.
AHS says individuals who were in the following locations during the specified dates and times, may have been exposed to measles.
April 16
Edmonton International Airport, international arrivals and baggage claim area — between 3:20 p.m. and 6 p.m.
April 20
Stollery Children’s Hospital Emergency Department — between 5 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Pharmacy 66 (13637 66 St NW Edmonton) — between 12:15 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
April 23
Stollery Children’s Hospital Emergency Department — between 4:40 a.m. to 9:33 a.m.
AHS says anyone who attended those locations during those times is at risk of developing measles if they’ve not had two documented doses of measles-containing vaccine.
Those who have not had two doses, who are pregnant, under one year of age, or have a weakened immune system are at greatest risk of getting measles and should contact Health Link at 1-877-720-0707.
Symptoms
Symptoms of measles include a fever of 38.3° C or higher, cough, runny nose, and/or red eyes, a red blotchy rash that appears three to seven days after fever starts, beginning behind the ears and on the face and spreading down the body and then to the arms and legs.
If you have any of these symptoms stay home and call Health Link.
In Alberta, measles vaccine is offered, free of charge, through Alberta’s publicly funded immunization program. Children in Alberta typically receive their first dose of measles vaccine at 12 months of age, and their second dose at 18 months of age.
Infected cows were already prohibited from being transported out of state, but that was based on the physical characteristics of the milk, which looks curdled when a cow is infected, or a cow has decreased lactation or low appetite, both symptoms of infection.
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