New Westminster families are embracing the chance to get their children vaccinated.
The city has the highest rates of pediatric vaccination in the Fraser Health region, which includes 13 local areas from Burnaby to Hope.
As of Dec. 14, 28% of New Westminster's five-to-11-year-olds had received their first dose of the Pfizer pediatric vaccine – putting the city in the top 10 provincewide, according to the latest data from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control.
The high rates of vaccination come despite the fact that New West does not have a full-time, stand-alone, all-ages vaccination clinic. Some children's appointments have been offered at Century House, where two more clinic days are being offered this weekend (Dec. 18 and 19). But local appointment slots have filled quickly, and many families have opted for clinics in nearby municipalities including Burnaby, Coquitlam and Surrey.
Across the province, local areas within Vancouver Coastal Health are leading the way in the 5-11 age group, with the Central Coast out in front at 70%, North Vancouver at 51% and Vancouver-Midtown at 49%. (See full breakdown below.)
'We need to get those numbers up': Dr. Bonnie Henry
B.C. health officials are continuing to urge people to get children vaccinated.
Currently, only about 40% of children in the 5-11 age group in B.C. have been registered for their shots. Children must first be registered in the province's Get Vaccinated system before being invited to book an immunization appointment.
“We need to get those numbers up," provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said at the province's Tuesday COVID-19 briefing. "Now’s the time to protect those young people, as we’re seeing new and more transmissible strains being entered into our community."
Henry said B.C. is currently seeing about 500 children in the 5-11 age group infected with COVID-19 each week.
"Thankfully, most of them get mild illness," she said, noting there was only one pediatric hospitalization between Dec. 2 and 8. "But you can bring that illness home; you can transmit it to others. We know the disruption it’s been causing to schools, to activities that are so important to young people. And now we have a pediatric vaccine that works specifically to protect young people."
The age group of particular note right now? Nine to 11.
That's the group where rates of transmission are not declining, Henry said, and where the province is seeing some community spread amongst those who aren't yet vaccinated. It's also the age group where test positivity rates are not coming down, despite a general provincewide trend towards lower test positivity.
"We've seen a levelling off that is concerning in that nine-to-11 age group," Henry noted.
She said B.C.'s experience is showing that vaccination works to prevent more serious illness. Among older children who've been eligible for vaccination longer (the 12-to-17 group), there have been no hospitalizations among vaccinated youth. Vaccination has also been a factor in case rates.
“The cases are considerably higher in children who are non-immunized," Henry said.
Henry said vaccination is particularly important in light of the uncertainty surrounding the Omicron variant, which is now spreading in B.C. communities.
She urged families to sign their children up now.
“We don’t want them to be sick with this virus," she said.
Want to get your child vaccinated? You can find all the details here.
Who's vaccinating their kids in B.C.?
Here are the top 10 areas for first-dose vaccinations in the 5-11 age group:
Central Coast: 70%
North Vancouver: 51%
Vancouver Midtown: 49%
Vancouver Westside: 40%
West Vancouver/Bowen Island: 40%
Vancouver Centre North: 39%
Vancouver Northeast: 35%
Vancouver City Centre: 35%
Nisga'a: 35%
New Westminster: 28%
Greater Victoria: 28%
Follow Julie MacLellan on Twitter @juliemaclellan.
Email Julie, [email protected].
