Winnipeg mother wants province to make vaccine records more accessible amid measles surge

A Winnipeg woman trying to access her child's vaccine records this week hopes the province will make that information easier for people to access amid a spate of measles cases in Canada.

Although there were no confirmed cases in the state as of Thursday, Megan Waters said her two sons are up to date on vaccinations to protect those around them, including their 9-month-old sister, who is not eligible for the shot. We have confirmed that it is from. No vaccine yet.

Waters says the means to get that information could be clearer.

“What we see on the news is a highly contagious and preventable disease,” she says. “I just want to double check.”

Waters said that while it was “very likely” that she and her sons were up to date on vaccines and had all their routine tests, she wanted to be sure now.

Waters called her healthcare provider at Access St. Boniface earlier this week and was referred by a receptionist to call the Manitoba Health Authority. Ms. Waters called, selected French, but the line died, and when she selected English, she received a message telling her to call again later due to high call volume.

“I'm on maternity leave. [so] “I’m just going to put you on speakerphone and wait, okay?” she said. “But then the line went out and I was like, ‘Okay, I’ll call you back later,’ which is just a little weird.”

After posting on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, she made an appointment with a nurse to go to her doctor's office on Thursday, thanks to the help of the people on the X app. She currently has an appointment scheduled for May 1st to check her vaccine record.

Top doctors also want to simplify the process

Dr. Brent Roussin, Manitoba's chief public health officer, told CBC News on Thursday that reminder letters are being mailed to parents whose children have delayed vaccinations. He also said he was encouraged to hear people reaching out for confirmation.

“We're hoping that people will reach out, and it's certainly a bit of a burden, but it's also important that people pay attention to this and hear the message,” he said.

The state says records can be requested online or by calling your local health department, but people who were vaccinated before 1988 should talk to their doctor.

Roussin said doctors can tell people their vaccination history, but only in person. He also said public health officials want to make it easier for people to get this information.

“These are the types of things that can improve access for some people and also improve some of the workload on the system,” he said.

Another option to obtain these records is to go to a pharmacy.

Pharmacies typically only have access to vaccine history during COVID-19 and influenza vaccinations, and cannot administer measles vaccinations. However, some pharmacies can provide vaccination records upon request.

“We have access to vaccine records – tell us if they have a…documented vaccine. [measles, mumps and rubella] It’s the vaccine,” said Jason Hepner, pharmacist and owner of Medicine Shop Pharmacy.

“We don't want to be blamed for crowding pharmacies with people coming in to get their vaccine records,” he said. “But at the same time, it's something that people are concerned about, and if our patients ask questions like that, we'll be happy to answer them if they bring their Manitoba health card.”

Hepner also said he encourages patients to call their doctor's office to obtain their records.

Manitoba Public Health announced that at the end of 2022, 80 per cent of two-year-olds had received at least one dose of measles vaccine, and nearly 75 per cent of seven-year-olds had received two doses.

Additionally, almost 88 per cent of 13-year-olds and 89 per cent of 17-year-olds had received both doses. That's about the same rate as people born after 1985, the state said.

Roussin said people who cannot visit a public health facility need to continue their efforts, and Waters said she hopes to have her children's vaccination status verified by her scheduled May 1 appointment. .

“I would have more people available to answer the phone that day so the calls don't go off,” she says.