New data shows Burnaby has the second-highest vaccination rate in Fraser Health for children aged five to 11.
According to the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) COVID-19 surveillance dashboard, 26% in the age range of five to 11 have received one dose of vaccine as of Dec. 14, 2021.
The highest community in the authority is New Westminster, who currently sits at 28% as of Dec. 14, 2021.
Burnaby currently only has one all ages, ongoing vaccine and testing centre at BCIT (3700 Willingdon Ave.) in parking lot B. Appointments must be booked beforehand.
'We need to get those numbers up': Dr. Bonnie Henry
B.C. health officials are continuing to urge people to get children vaccinated.
Currently, only about 40% of children in the 5-11 age group in B.C. have been registered for their shots. Children must first be registered in the province's Get Vaccinated system before being invited to book an immunization appointment.
“We need to get those numbers up," provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said at the province's Tuesday COVID-19 briefing. "Now’s the time to protect those young people, as we’re seeing new and more transmissible strains being entered into our community."
Henry said B.C. is currently seeing about 500 children in the 5-11 age group infected with COVID-19 each week.
"Thankfully, most of them get mild illness," she said, noting there was only one pediatric hospitalization between Dec. 2 and 8. "But you can bring that illness home; you can transmit it to others. We know the disruption it’s been causing to schools, to activities that are so important to young people. And now we have a pediatric vaccine that works specifically to protect young people."
The age group of particular note right now? Nine to 11.
That's the group where rates of transmission are not declining, Henry said, and where the province is seeing some community spread amongst those who aren't yet vaccinated. It's also the age group where test positivity rates are not coming down, despite a general provincewide trend towards lower test positivity.
"We've seen a levelling off that is concerning in that nine-to-11 age group," Henry noted.
She said B.C.'s experience is showing that vaccination works to prevent more serious illness. Among older children who've been eligible for vaccination longer (the 12-to-17 group), there have been no hospitalizations among vaccinated youth. Vaccination has also been a factor in case rates.
“The cases are considerably higher in children who are non-immunized," Henry said.
Henry said vaccination is particularly important in light of the uncertainty surrounding the Omicron variant, which is now spreading in B.C. communities.
She urged families to sign their children up now.
“We don’t want them to be sick with this virus," she said.
Who's vaccinating their kids in B.C.?
Here are the top 10 areas for first-dose vaccinations in the 5-11 age group:
Central Coast: 70%
North Vancouver: 51%
Vancouver Midtown: 49%
Vancouver Westside: 40%
West Vancouver/Bowen Island: 40%
Vancouver Centre North: 39%
Vancouver Northeast: 35%
Vancouver City Centre: 35%
Nisga'a: 35%
New Westminster: 28%
Greater Victoria: 28%
- with files from Julie MacLellan, Burnaby NOW
