Vaccines

Enough with the harassment: How to deal with anti-vax cults

The anti-vaxxers who protested outside of my own home because I'm a medical officer of health demonstrate cultish behaviour. Here's how we counter them.

Alberta government’s failure means we must protect ourselves

The Alberta government has given up on protecting us from COVID-19. But even though our government may no longer care about us, we can still care about each other. Here are ten tips on how to stay safe.

Fear of the unknown: Parents want information and transparency when deciding to vaccinate their children

Through interviews and focus groups held with parents of kids 5 to 11 years old, Health Commons Solutions Lab learned about their motivations, beliefs and questions when it comes to vaccinating their kids – and what resources they need.

Omicron may be less severe but ‘let it rip’ is not the answer

Some argue that since Omicron is less severe than previous variants and all Canadians will likely be infected eventually, why not “let it rip” and be done with it? But there are three fundamental problems with this approach.

Vaccines: A Christmas wish for our children

Many parents are hesitant to vaccinate their children. But choosing not to get a vaccine is not a risk-free choice, but rather a choice to take another, more serious risk. In fact, it could be one of the most important health decisions parents will make.

Fear of losing freedom common thread behind vaccine hesitancy, cross-cultural survey finds

Researchers have found that belief in conspiracies and the psychological phenomenon of reactivity are strong cross-cultural predictors of vaccine hesitancy. But are these characteristics fixed traits?

Inuit communities bracing for return of RSV in babies

Health advocates are raising alarm that infants in Nunavut, and especially Inuit infants, face grave risks as a potent respiratory virus – deadlier than COVID-19 and influenza – re-emerges after a one-year hiatus. Health officials now fear serious outbreaks in Canada’s North.

Kali Barrett

Vaccines must be mandatory in all health-care settings in order to protect patients, protect health-care workers and prevent future health-care worker shortages. Furthermore, hospitals are temples of science, and we need to make decisions based on science – such as mandating vaccination.

Allison McGeer

Vaccine mandates will lead good health-care workers to be fired, thereby exacerbating systemic inequities – and all for a rationale that appeals to patient safety but which does not always stand up to scrutiny. We also can't allow vaccine mandates to send the message that we no longer need to use multiple complementary infection-control measures.

Amit Arya

Vaccinations should be mandatory for all health-care workers because they will keep vulnerable patients safe. We know this from our experience successfully mandating vaccination among staff in long-term care. Furthermore, vaccine mandates should not be blamed for staff shortages in the health-care system.

Stefan Baral

Mandating COVID-19 vaccines amounts to a passive and insensitive infection-control measure that does not address the real drivers of COVID-19 infection. Moreover, it deviates from the core principles of public health, eroding trust between public health and those it serves.

Vaccination among the pregnant lagging despite growing evidence of safety and efficacy

Despite data showing the safety and effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine for pregnant women, uptake is still lagging. Here are some of the reasons why.

‘For the virus, one person is the entire environment’: The emergence of Omicron

Some virologists hypothesize that Omicron and other variants of concern emerged after mutating within an immunosuppressed person. The solution, they say, is to get vaccines to under-vaccinated countries.

We’re not safe until we’re all safe: Canada must live up to global vaccine commitments

Global vaccine inequity is not just wrong, but also dangerous. As Omicron is showing us, we aren’t safe until we’re all safe. Here's how Canada can contribute to global vaccine equity now.

Is the COVID vaccine for children safe and effective? Addressing parents’ concerns

Editor-in-chief Seema Marwaha answers common questions and debunks prominent misconceptions about the COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5-11.

‘We’re deviating from what makes us Canadian’: An interview with Stefan Baral

Physician-epidemiologist Stefan Baral opposes vaccine certificates on the grounds that they further sideline marginalized groups and strain the relationship between public health and the public it serves.

Building trust key to overcoming vaccine hesitancy among parents

Healthy Debate Editor-in-Chief Seema Marwaha speaks about how to navigate the hesitancy that some parents might feel about vaccinating children aged 5-11 against COVID-19.

Vaccine Hunters looks forward to the day it isn’t needed anymore

During the pandemic, Vaccine Hunters Canada became a household name because the group worked around the clock to help Canadians get vaccinated. We're profiling the group as a Pillars of the Pandemic honouree.

Musician, aspiring writer – and one of Ontario’s toughest medical officers of health

Lawrence Loh, Peel Region’s medical officer of health, worked tirelessly to promote public health in one of Ontario's worst-hit COVID-19 hotspots. We're profiling him as a Pillars of the Pandemic honouree.

Team Vaccine: Listen, Care and Act

Shiran Isaacksz played a key role in organizing a massive effort to vaccinate as much of Toronto as possible. We're profiling him as a Pillars of the Pandemic honouree.