Northern health units remind parents to submit vaccine records
Health units in Northern Ontario are reminding parents to keep their children’s immunization records up to date.
Algoma Public Health and Public Health Sudbury & Districts said they sent out thousands of letters to that effect.
"We are working right now to go through the Immunization of School Pupils Act and have sent 4,000 letters out to families as a reminder to submit their records to Algoma Public Health," said Kristy Harper, director of health protection for Algoma Public Health.
Brenda Stankiewicz, a public health nurse with Public Health Sudbury & Districts said lack of access to primary health care could be one reason for lagging vaccine records.
"People weren’t able to see their health care providers," Stankiewicz said, adding that some parents could have simply forgotten to submit their child’s records.
Up-to-date immunizations for students are required with some exceptions to avoid suspension from school.
"There may also be some of us who don’t have the connections of the stories and the experiences of what it would have been like prior to having vaccines," said Harper.
- Download the CTV News app now
- Get local breaking news alerts
- Daily newsletter with the top local stories emailed to your inbox
"Certainly, vaccines are something that can speak for themselves, the safety and efficacy; they’ve been around for decades."
"Without the experience of the illness, it’s hard to really imagine just how serious the illness is," said Stankiewicz.
As measles cases are popping up in other parts of the province, Algoma Public Health reports more than 98 per cent vaccine coverage for measles, while Public Health Sudbury shows 95 per cent coverage.
However, these numbers are pre-pandemic and may not reflect current vaccination rates.
Algoma Public Health reports more than 98 per cent vaccine coverage for measles, while Public Health Sudbury shows 95 per cent coverage.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Liberal MP says she's leaving politics over disrespectful dialogue, threats, misogyny
Liberal MP Pam Damoff says she won't run again in the next federal election, saying she has experienced misogyny, disrespectful dialogue in politics and threats to her life.
Concerns about plexiglass prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall plexiglass barriers.
Federal employees will be required to spend 3 days a week in the office
Starting in September, public servants in the core public administration will be required to work in the office a minimum of three days a week. The Treasury Board Secretariat says executives will need to be in the office four days per week.
OPP officer said 'someone's going to get hurt' before wrong-way Hwy. 401 crash
As multiple Durham police cruisers were chasing a robbery suspect on the wrong side of Highway 401 Monday night, an Ontario Provincial Police officer shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher, "Someone's going to get hurt."
Eating disorders among youth skyrocketed during pandemic and so did associated costs, report finds
The number of young people experiencing eating disorders surged during the height of the pandemic as the social and economic costs skyrocketed too, a new pan-Canadian report has found.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Göring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Poilievre returns to House unrepentant for calling Trudeau 'wacko,' Speaker not resigning
An unrepentant Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday to pepper the prime minister about his drug decriminalization policies after being booted the day prior for refusing to take back calling Justin Trudeau 'wacko' over his approach to the issue.
Toddler of Phoenix first responder dies after bounce house goes airborne
A two-year-old child died after a strong gust of wind sent the bounce house he was in airborne and into a neighbouring lot in central Arizona, the Pinal County Sheriff's Office said.
Canada's most wanted fugitive arrested in P.E.I. in connection with Toronto homicide
A suspect in a fatal shooting in Toronto’s east end last summer has been arrested in Charlottetown, just one week after he topped a list of Canada’s most wanted fugitives.