Achi news desk-
There has been an increase in the number of people seeking measles vaccinations this year in Calgary, several local pharmacists told Global News.
“We’re certainly getting more requests for it,” said David Brewerton, Lukes Pharmacy Bridgeland pharmacy manager. “People ask: ‘Am I eligible? Do I need it? Is it available?’”
But, Brewerton says the vaccine is hard to come by.
“There is none. There are two manufacturers in Canada and one has no stock. The other has limited stock so they limit it to organizations like Alberta Health,” Brewerton said.
Pharmaceutical giants Merck and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) posted reports to a Canadian drug shortage website showing they are experiencing shortages of their MMR vaccines used to vaccinate against measles, mumps and rubella, with doses that n remaining reserved for public immunization programmes.
The disclosure comes as the highly contagious infection spreads across the country and with health authorities strongly advising Canadians to be fully vaccinated against the disease, especially before travel.
“Typically, pharmacists haven’t had access to vaccine stock, so we rely on private stock,” said Randy Howden, president of the Alberta Pharmacists Association.
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“Currently, there is no private stock available from our warehouse and we are told that may not change until the end of April or May.”
In Alberta, pharmacists only have four public health vaccines including those for influenza, COVID-19, pertussis for pregnant women and pneumonia.
The association has been asking the province if there is a possibility of having access to all the public health vaccines.
“We know public health is under a lot of stress with everything that’s been going on for a number of years,” Howden said. “We know it’s difficult for people to access vaccines through public health because of delays in appointments.
The public tend to like coming to the pharmacy. They have a relationship with their pharmacist and it is a comfortable and accessible environment.
“We would probably see more people getting these vaccines if it was an easier process overall,” Howden added. “We have not had a solid answer as to why we are unable to access these.”
Global News has reached out to Alberta Health for comment. This article will be updated when a response is received.
Howden said he was concerned about the rising rates of two preventable diseases.
“We are seeing pertussis again as well. We had very low rates in Canada for many years, and because of declining vaccination rates for those two vaccines now, we’ve opened the door for these viruses to come back,” he said.
“It is very worrying that we are seeing these diseases come back.”
Beginning March 31, Calgary adults who have ordered vaccinations will only be able to get their shots at the Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre.
Alberta Health Services says moving all adult immunizations to one location means appointments will be available six days a week. There will also be additional appointment times in the evenings and at weekends.
Immunizations are currently offered at AHS clinics in Brentwood, Calgary South Health Center and Sunridge. AHS says adult shots are only offered one day a week at those locations.
According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, adults born before 1970 who plan to travel should receive at least one dose of the vaccine. Those born after 1970 should have two.
With file by Nathaniel Dove, Global News
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