Tuesday August 3, 2021 | LANGFORD, BC
by Mary P Brooke, Editor | Island Social Trends
On Wednesday, August 4, all Island Health mass immunization clinics are offering walk-in first and second doses for all people ages 12+.
The vaccines given to people will be either Pfizer or Moderna (both are the mRNA type).
This effort is to help increase the number of people who are vaccinated against COVID-19, especially as the fall-winter respiratory season approaches (including back-to-school and return-to-campus).
Two doses are considered necessary for full vaccination.
No registration required:
You don’t need to register online or phone before you arrive:
- First dose eligibility: All people aged 12+
- Second dose eligibility: All people vaccinated before June 16 (bring your immunization record card).
Island Health asks that you bring photo ID with you to the clinic.
Locations:
Full list of Island Health’s open mass immunizations clinic at covid19.islandclinics.ca.
Drop-in immunization continues after Aug 4:
Across BC on Wednesday August 4 the COVID-19 mass immunization clinics will be wide-open to offering first and second dose injection of the COVID vaccines, no appointments necessary.
- Anyone 12 or older can walk-in to any mass immunization clinic to receive a first dose, without an appointment. All clinics are listed here: https://covid19.islandclinics.ca
- On Walk-in Wednesday (August 4), anyone 12 or older can walk-in to any mass immunization clinic to receive a first dose or second dose without an appointment, more details here: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/covid-19/vaccine/vaxforbc#walk-in-wednesday and here: https://www.islandhealth.ca/easy-access-clinics
Reaching the unvaccinated / undervaccinated:
Hopefully the Walk-in Wednesday messaging reaches the group that is still catching up to vaccination, i.e. young adults in their 20s & 30s.
For many in that age group this will be a word-of-mouth campaign thru others (a lot are *not* on Twitter, by choice, and also not Facebook); the active edge of the disenfranchised have built their own social networks within online streams such as Reddit and Tumblr, where the sun doesn’t shine for mainstream media.
Vaccination profile:
On Tuesday August 4, the BC Centre for Disease Control stats show a percentage of people in BC (age 12+) who have received their first dose as 81.4% (up a tad over the long weekend compared to 81.1% on July 30), and 67.3% have received their second dose (notably us from 64.9% on July 30).
Herd (community) immunity is generally aiming for 90% fully vaccinated during this COVID pandemic, especially given the transmissibility of the Delta variant.
Immunization clinics continued to operate through the BC Day long weekend, as part of the push to achieve the province’s immunization goals.
Active cases surging upward again:
The number of daily cases and active cases are increasing during the economic reopening in BC (presently in Step 3, since July 1) and as return-to-campus and back-to-school loom in September.
- As of July 30, there were 1,231 active COVID cases in BC (that count went up all last week, from 695 active cases on July 26 which jumped to 909 in the July 28 BC CDC stats report). Today that total active case number increased to 1,544.
- In Island Health the active cases of COVID were 65 at July 30, up from 32 at the start of last week. Today that active case count on Vancouver Island is significantly higher at 85.
The positivity rate is back up again, to 1.6 at the end of last week. Province-wide it was up to 2.3. This indicates a return to exponential growth of viral transmission.
More new cases not unexpected:
Both Dr Henry and Island Health’s top doctor Dr Richard Stanwick have said that new case increases were expected as social and economic activity open up.
Last week Dr Henry had to do the equivalent of a ‘surgical strike’ in the Central Okanagan area of Interior Health to clamp down on surging increases in that summer tourism area where cases are skyrocketing among young adults in their 20s and 30s; not only are masks mandatory again and physical distancing required but interval between first and second doses has been decreased down to eight weeks as a way to get the vaccination percentages up.
Vaccination profile:
People in their 20s and 30s are the least represented in vaccination stats. But they are catching up, said Health Minister Adrian Dix last week, in response to a media question from Island Social Trends.
In that same media session, Provincial Health Officer Dr Bonnie Henry defended her age-based approach (eldest people first, in descending order by age) which essentially left working-age young adults to last. Even youth age 12 to 17 years were launched into the queue (who could just show up with an adult, without an appointment) ahead of 30-somethings.
People who are in their 20s and 30s have been left behind in so many ways leading up to the pandemic, this ‘left til last’ feeling during the vaccination process that is intended to save lives is not unlike leaving soldiers unprotected on the battlefield.
Children under the age of 12 are not yet vaccinated in BC or anywhere across Canada; Health Canada is awaiting trial results of vaccine products as being done in children. Health Canada has so far approved Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZenca and Janssen vaccine products for use in Canada.
COVID spread — when asymptomatic & vaccinated:
Anyone of any age can be infected by the SARS-CoV-2 (aka COVID-19) virus, and transmit it to others even they are asymptomatic and even if they are fully vaccinated.
Locally, the Sooke Teachers Association (STA) whose teachers work in the Sooke School District 62 (SD62) with schools in Langford, Colwood and Sooke, is reminding their membership to get vaccinated before the start of the 2021-2021 school year which starts September 7.
===== LINKS (articles by Island Social Trends):
Vax Van at local stadium: prelude to Aug 4 Drop-In Wednesday (August 2, 2021)
Vax Van did their thing at the Pacific FC home game (July 31, 2021)
Vax Van heading to the Pacific FC home game on July 30 (July 29, 2021)
Lack of air conditioning: Island Health temporarily relocates July 30 Eagle Ridge COVID-19 immunization appointments (July 29, 2021)
Vancouver Island vaccination count reaches 1 million (July 18, 2021)
BC & Island Health vaccination profile at July 2 (July 2)
