Melissa Couto Zuber, The Canadian Press
Published February 21, 2021 8:15 AM EST
Canadians who consult social media can find photos of their American colleagues with wide smiles and vaccination cards that show that they have been vaccinated against COVID-19.
A recent increase in the distribution of vaccines in the United States has largely outpaced its northern neighbor, and some Canadians are wondering why distribution here is so delayed.
Dr. Krutika Kuppalli, an infectious physician from South Carolina, says that while the speed of launch in the United States has been impressive lately, it has not been without its flaws.
Communication between states has mostly been lacking, she says, and the absence of a uniform standard for vaccine eligibility has led to inconsistencies between jurisdictions. Some states, for example, include teachers at the top of their priority list, while others are still working on inoculating people aged 80 and over.
The confusion in the early stages of the launch caused frustration and diminished confidence, she added. And while the move to a new presidential administration last month has led to some improvements, Kuppalli says there is room for more.
“I don’t think we are a successful model,” she said in a telephone interview. “We had many challenges. … but it’s getting better. “
“Communication is better, there is definitely more transparency, and states have been very open about increasing vaccination measures and implementing mass vaccination sites. So, all of this is helping. “
The United States was vaccinating an average of 1.7 million Americans a day this week and administered at least one dose to more than 12 percent of its population by Friday.
Canada, which recently handled weeks of shipping delays and disruptions from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, has distributed nearly 1.4 million doses since its launch began in mid-December, covering about 2.65 percent of its population with at least one dose.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Friday that vaccine delivery is expected to increase rapidly, however, with provinces gearing up to distribute nearly 1.5 million doses in the next three weeks.
Americans have many factors in their favor when they speed up the distribution of the vaccine, experts say, including a much broader supply than Canada’s, reinforced by the production of Moderna, based in the United States.
While having supplies is the first step, Kuppalli says taking these vaccines to pharmacies, where they can be easily administered, has also helped. The American government announced its goal of supplying vaccines to about 40,000 drugstores in the coming months.
Canada has not yet reached the pharmaceutical stage of vaccine implantation, but Dr. Isaac Bogoch, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Toronto, expects this to happen as soon as we have enough supplies to diversify.
“We have exactly the same plan, we just need the critical mass of vaccines,” said Bogoch, who is also on the Ontario vaccine distribution task force. “When we do that, you will see coast-to-coast vaccines offered in many different environments.”
While dispensing at pharmacies makes sense for quick implementation, it can also lead to problems with missed doses if people don’t come to the appointments, says Kelly Grindrod, a professor at the University of Waterloo School of Pharmacy.
The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines need to be used in a relatively short period of time after they are thawed from deep-frozen storage temperatures, says Grindrod, and once a bottle has been punctured, that interval is further shortened.
She says Canada is learning from the wasteful setbacks that other countries are facing, and she hopes that Plan B lists will be compiled from individuals that they can fill in quickly in the event of a no-show.
These lists must be made fairly, she warns.
“You have to make sure that there is no waiting line. So it’s not your friend coming in, it’s actually people who would normally fall in the next round of priority. “
Grindrod says the jump in the queue – where people least at risk of contracting the virus or have a bad COVID result are vaccinated before high-priority groups – has been culturally more unacceptable in Canada than in the US, a country without health universal- service system.
So there is justifiable outrage, she adds, when Canadians see American friends bragging about having received their jabs, especially if they are not in high-risk populations.
“Equity is probably the most important principle in launching the Canadian vaccine,” said Grindrod. “And I’m not sure if that is the case in the USA”
While the American implementation has had its shortcomings, Grindrod admires some of the more exclusive approaches that take place south of the border to ensure that high-risk groups can receive their doses.
She noted the recent role that black churches have played in coordinating vaccination initiatives among typically underserved neighborhoods, and pharmacists who are distributing vaccines in remote communities to inoculate those who cannot easily reach an immunization center.
“You are seeing really positive examples where communities themselves are helping to create an effective reach,” she said.
“So I think these are the real lessons that we can learn from the US”