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As flu cases rise across the province and vaccine hesitancy persists, Ontario pharmacists and doctors are urging residents to get immunized.
The flu shot continues to be the best way to prevent being infected, said Dr. Isaac Bogoch, an infectious diseases specialist at Toronto General Hospital.
“The message is: Get the flu shot,” he told CBC Radio’s Metro Morning this week.
“The flu is a nasty, nasty virus that can really land people in hospital.”
While the flu season is just starting in Ontario, parts of the Southern Hemisphere have already seen a rise in cases — above average for the second year in a row.
The ongoing flu season abroad has been marked by record case counts, as well as an early start to the season across parts of Asia and the U.K. As Canada heads into the winter, it could be a bellwether of what’s to come.
Public Health Ontario data shows nearly two per cent of tests for influenza came back positive from Oct. 26 to Nov. 1 — the most recent surveillance period — and noted it was higher than the week before.
The provincial health agency predicts the number of cases will continue to go up in November, especially among children.
Yet, vaccine hesitancy and apathy persist. The reason there’s uncertainty is because the topic of vaccines has been top of mind for so long, said Sandra Hanna, a Toronto pharmacist and CEO of the Neighbourhood Pharmacist Association of Canada — especially after the COVID-19 pandemic.
“There’s more just a general fatigue,” Hanna told CBC Toronto this week.
“We want to get back to that mentality that it is part of a routine practice to keep us healthy, not only individually, but as a population.”
Latest strain mutation could be mismatch for flu shot
A new influenza A strain is also worsening the reluctance of some to get vaccinated. H3N2 is typically known for more severe infections, especially among older people.
Canada is bracing for a potentially bad flu season because one of the main viruses circulating around the world is a bad match with this year’s vaccine. Still, health officials say it’s worth getting a flu shot, because it does offer some protection.
The particularly troubling bit? Some experts say the latest mutation is widening the gap between the virus and the available flu shot, possibly rendering it a mismatch.
But that doesn’t mean the immunization’s efficacy is zero, it just means it might be lower, Bogoch said.
“There are three circulating strains of influenza,” he said. “You’re not going to know which strain you’re exposed to.”
Hanna agrees. She says a vaccine is better than no vaccine at all.
“When there is a mismatch, there is potentially slightly reduced effectiveness, but a vaccine will still provide some protection,” Hanna said.
Pharmacy students helping vaccinate
Starting in November, more than 265 first-year Doctor of Pharmacy students at the University of Toronto’s Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy will head to local pharmacies to lend a helping hand in administering injections, under the supervision of pharmacists.
Program director Natalie Crown said more and more Canadians are heading to pharmacies for their immunizations due to the close proximity and easy access.
“It’s an extra set of hands in the community pharmacies, that are already busy at this time of year, to help vaccinate our communities,” she told CBC Toronto Thursday.
Crown said she’s been teaching for a number of years and students are always excited to get a hands-on approach to learning.
“It’s a really tangible way that they can help out immediately in their pharmacy practice environments,” she said. “The pharmacists that are receiving them are excited about it as well.”
