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Hi, I’m Dr. Glenn Corneil, Acting Medical Officer of Health for the Timiskaming Health Unit. 

Thank you to everyone who continues with the ongoing efforts to protect yourself and your community by keeping up with available COVID-19 vaccinations. Vaccination remains extremely important, especially with the highly contagious Omicron variant during wave six.

Understandably, there are some questions about the COVID-19 boosters. I would like to take a moment to help answer a few frequent ones we have been asked.

Why are there so many boosters needed for the COVID-19 vaccine?

The need for multiple doses is very common for most vaccines. For example, vaccines like Hepatitis B and Gardasil need 3 doses. Many vaccines also require booster doses to maintain protection which is why a tetanus shot is needed every ten years. Plus, viruses that evolve quickly like influenza need a booster dose every year. 

So it’s not at all surprising that COVID-19 has needed booster doses. It is a new virus so humanity has no natural immunity and it is a virus that evolves very quickly. The ability of the virus to change this quickly also means that people who are vulnerable should get boosters as soon as they are available in order to keep protected. In the future, the COVID-19 vaccine will likely become an annual fall booster dose like our flu shot.

Another frequent question asked is: If you have already had COVID-19, why do you need to get vaccinated or get a booster?

Evidence indicates that getting the COVID-19 vaccine provides better and longer lasting immunity than a natural infection. If you develop a COVID infection, natural immunity is very protective for 90 days, but after that immunity may start to weaken. So booster doses are really important to create long lasting immunity. 

After infection, you can get a booster dose at any time once your symptoms clear but the best time to get boosted is 90 days afterwards. 

And the last question I’ll answer today is: 

Why are so many people still getting COVID-19 even after three doses? Are the vaccines working?

You can still become infected with COVID-19 after getting vaccinated, especially due to the contagiousness of Omicron. But, if you do catch Covid, the symptoms are usually much milder. Plus vaccination does a tremendous job preventing the most serious outcomes of hospitalization, ICU admission, and death. Also, the Covid vaccines look like they work very well in preventing long-Covid symptoms. 

COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. Millions of people have received COVID-19 vaccinations over the past year. These people have been provided with the best protection available against COVID. It continues to be essential to protect ourselves and people who are most vulnerable, like anyone who is pregnant, young children who can’t yet be vaccinated, immunocompromised people, and seniors.

Please don’t hesitate to reach to your healthcare provider, pharmacist or call the health unit with any questions.  Stay well, and thanks for watching. 

 

 

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