04/29/2022
Saskatchewan’s COVID-19 vaccination rate stayed stagnant as the province continued to report sky-high rates of hospitalization.
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As of Wednesday, 409 patients with COVID-19 were in the province’s hospitals, according to its latest epidemiology report, with an average of 32 more patients with the virus being admitted to provincial hospitals each day over the past week.
A further 14 people with the virus were reported dead between April 17 and April 23, the report said, bringing Saskatchewan’s recorded death toll to 1,310 people since March 2020.
In that same week, 22 new outbreaks of the virus were reported in long-term and personal care homes.
Reports from provincial emergency rooms suggest sizeable numbers of patients continued to present with symptoms of COVID-19. Epidemiologists have attributed the rise in infections to the proliferation of BA.2, a relatively new iteration of the Omicron variant.
Saskatchewan also removed its public health restrictions like masking requirements earlier than most of its other provinces, which some experts say has contributed to its persistently high rates of hospitalization.
Only 166 of the 409 people reported in hospital were classified as being hospitalized for “COVID-related illness.” Dr. Haissam Haddad, the provincial head of medicine, said those hospitalizations are contributing to “unprecedented” pressures in Saskatoon’s hospital wards. He estimated they were operating at around 140 per cent capacity on Wednesday morning.
The province continues to urge vaccination as the best defence against COVID-19. However, almost all vaccines administered in the province are going to people who have already had two or even three shots. In the week covered by the province’s latest report, more than 80 per cent of administered shots were “second boosters” to patients who had already had three doses of vaccine.
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The province expanded eligibility for second boosters earlier this week, allowing everyone over the age of 50 to get one.
Dr. Alyson Kelvin, a virologist at the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) at the University of Saskatchewan, said the booster serves as a reminder for the immune system.
“What we do know is that after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, it doesn’t seem to be specific to what number of vaccine that you get, your antibody levels do start to decrease about five to six months after getting your vaccine,” she said.
“That doesn’t necessarily mean you have less protection. That’s the normal functioning of our immune system. You get exposed to something, your immune system ramps up, but it can’t stay at that high level forever.”
There is strong evidence that a third dose is beneficial against the Omicron variant, but data on fourth doses isn’t as strong, she said.
“What the data is showing now is that older individuals do seem to have a protective benefit from that fourth dose. But the data so far — and it might change when we get more numbers — is showing that healthy adults don’t seem to have an additional benefit. They already have their level of protection.”
Uptake of third doses has stalled, even though provincial data show they offer strong protection against hospitalization and other severe outcomes. Just over half of Saskatchewan adults have had their third shot.
Kelvin said there needs to be a re-focus on getting people their first, second and third doses.
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“I still think it’s not a long-term strategy to say ‘Let’s just add another dose of that original vaccine and keep boosting,’ ” she said.
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