Thank you for that question.
I think that vaccines remain a cornerstone of our ongoing management of COVID-19, and it is really important to continue to encourage uptake of the first two doses but also the boosters now for up-to-date vaccination.
I think there are a number of reasons why, for example, the booster rates are not as high as for the first two doses, and we need to understand better and address those issues. I'm sure that when you're on the ground in Peel, some of the local health units will talk about the different challenges experienced by different population groups.
There's certainly a lack of trust in policy-makers, public health officials and governments by certain groups that have been experiencing inequities. There's complacency, people thinking that two doses is enough, when we know that, with the arrival of the omicron variant, you need to get up to date with the booster dose when eligible. Convenience and access is still an issue for many, so local public health has been using many different measures to try to improve access through mobile clinics or getting pharmacists.... Thank you, pharmacists, for providing your support to getting vaccines into arms.
I think a lot of different information and misinformation also doesn't help. Providing credible information through health care providers is a really important component and one that the public health agency has been supporting by providing health care providers with credible information so that they can counsel their clients.
Because of the trust issue, we've been trying to enable local leaders in their communities, including faith leaders and other trusted leadership, in order to augment trust and vaccine uptake. I think you need a multi-faceted approach, as we had for the first two doses.
I remind you that if you recently had COVID, you can get a vaccine as recommended, but you wait three months before you get a booster. Omicron virus itself may not provide consistent protection against further infection, so it's also important to trust that point.
For parents, I think that the uptake in children aged five to 11 could be better. I just want to reassure parents that over three million doses have been provided to kids in Canada, and there are no safety signals. Many children have been vaccinated around the world, so we encourage parents to seek answers to their questions and get their kids vaccinated.