Vaccination rates among Windsor-Essex youth lagging behind the rest of Ontario
CBC
While more than half of Windsor-Essex adults have received three doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, the rate of vaccination among younger children remain lower than the rest of Ontario.
But there are efforts underway to bring those numbers up.
As of Wednesday, about 23 per cent of Windsor-Essex children in that age range have received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, public health data shows. Across Ontario, 26 per cent of children aged 5-11 have received two doses.
"It's not new to have some hesitancy with new vaccines," said Dr. Andrea Steen, chief of staff at Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare and a local family physician.
"We've seen this in the past with other vaccines when they were introduced," she said. "Back in the late 1990s, when the chicken pox vaccine was introduced, there was a lot of pushback."
"A lot of people who felt that, oh, the kids should just get chickenpox, they shouldn't have the vaccine," Steen said. "But ... nobody even considers not vaccinating their kids with chickenpox anymore. It's not even a discussion, it's just part of the vaccine routine."
Earlier this month, Windsor-Essex school boards sent a survey to parents, asking about their children's vaccination status, and why they may be hesitant.
The results of the survey haven't been publicly shared by the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit (WECHU).
WECHU representatives weren't available for an interview on Wednesday.
Cystal Anger said while she's vaccinated, she's holding off when it comes to getting her kids the vaccine.
"I just wanted to see the reactions in the kids over time," she said Wednesday. "To vaccinate myself is my personal choice. I'm not an anti-vaxxer, they have their other vaccines but it's a newer vaccine."
"I want to be a bit cautious about it."
Anger said with hospitalizations down and pandemic restrictions easing, it may be difficult to convince parents to get their children vaccinated.
"We've all had COVID already and we've all lived," she said. "I've had worse flus, I've had better flus."
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