Some Ontario parents who booked a COVID-19 booster vaccine for their children Thursday said they're relieved the shots are now available for those aged five to 11 but believe it should have happened earlier.
Lorraine Pirrie logged on from rural Nova Scotia on Thursday morning to make appointments in Toronto for her three children aged five, seven and 10, looking for spots after their return to the city but before the start of the school year.
She managed to lock down appointments for next Tuesday, a day before classes resume in Toronto public schools. The timing was "a little bit anxiety-provoking," Pirrie said in an interview, even though her kids' school has good health measures in place and has avoided major outbreaks so far.
"I'm glad that it came but I do think it's a little bit later than it should have," especially since it takes time for the vaccine to kick in, she said. "That's not helpful to literally be within a week of school."
Ontario's top doctor announced Wednesday that the province would start rolling out boosters for kids five to 11 this week, and appointments became available Thursday morning through the province's online vaccine portal.
They can also be booked through local public health units as wells as some pharmacies and health-care providers.
Earlier this month, Health Canada said it had approved Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine as a booster for children in that age group. The agency said the third dose is to be administered at least six months after the second.
In announcing the booster rollout Wednesday, Dr. Kieran Moore said the province had been "working diligently" since Health Canada approved the booster to create guidance and sort out the logistics of distributing doses equitably across the province.
Johanna Veenendaal-Knowles snagged an appointment in Kingston, Ont., for her six-year-old daughter Thursday morning, and said "deep breathing and stickers" got the needle-averse child through the experience.
Though her daughter is homeschooled, getting the third dose before the start of the school year was still important, Veenendaal-Knowles said, noting her daughter is part of homeschooling groups with other children and will be interacting with young relatives who go to class in person.
"We really wanted to make sure that we have this booster because we have vulnerable family members and we also have a seven-week-old in our home.
Veenendaal-Knowles said she feels it wasn't "the wisest decision" to roll out boosters for this age group so close to the start of the school year.
"I don't think it was in the interest of parents and the education system and our health-care system to wait two weeks (after the Health Canada approval) to make these shots available," she said.
Others said they didn't feel the need to immediately book a booster for their children.
Kevin O'Brien said he welcomed the arrival of third doses for kids, but his family will wait until they can get convenient appointments at their local pharmacy.
"We're totally for it, but we're also not rushing to do it," he said from Waterloo, Ont.
Both of his daughters – the youngest is four – have been attending summer camps and other events in recent months, and it would be inconsistent to then sound the alarm about back-to-school, he said. Both girls have also avoided COVID-19 so far, he said, though that "could change on a dime."
O'Brien said some of his friends are "probably freaking out a little bit" about the timing, however, particularly those who are immunocompromised.
"If it is in ramp-up to the school year, then it's super last minute," he said. "If we were in a situation where it was imperative for us to get our kids that booster then I would be freaking out."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 1, 2022.
Paola Loriggio, The Canadian Press
