Alberta pediatric COVID-19 vaccinations lagging

It's been a busy summer for so many Alberta families, but there may be one thing you're forgetting to cross off your to-do list.

 

Pediatric vaccination rates are abysmal in the province, despite experts warning that added protection could be vital as school starts back up.

 

"This would be a really excellent time to try to consolidate that protection," infectious-disease specialist Dr. Lynora Saxinger said. "If all the kids are getting back into close quarters in the fall and winter — which is what we expect — there really could be a lot more transmission coming."

 

The province is just a few weeks out from the start of school, and that typically means sickness spreads quickly throughout the autumn. 

 

But this year, a tool to help fight some spread isn't, by and large, being utilized. 

 

As of Monday, only 6,620 Albertans between six months and five years have gotten a COVID-19 vaccination. 

 

That's 2.7 per cent of the eligible population. 

 

The numbers are better in the next age group, which stretches from five to 11 years, but the provincial 50.6 per cent is still last in the country. 

 

There may be a number of reasons for the low uptake. 

 

Families tend to be busy this time of year, and experts believe messaging on the vaccine's effectiveness has been somewhat lacking. 

 

"But a rare bad event that can happen with COVID-19 infection in kids — if it's preventable, we really should still try to prevent it," Saxinger said. "This shot is safe. We know it."

 

That may be another issue.

 

While many parents had no issues getting vaccinated themselves, thousands have stopped short of offering their children similar protection. And it's adults making the choice when it comes to pediatric vaccines. 

 

But almost every scientific and medical expert says there's no reason to be nervous for our kids.  

 

"These vaccines now have as much experience or more than all of the other childhood vaccines that we routinely offer," Saxinger said. 

 

Alberta is one of the last provinces tracking pediatric vaccine rates.