Laval hopes to score with vaccination clinic outside popular bar on Habs game night

Public health officials in Laval, Que., are hoping to entice young adults to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

To make things easier, they have set up a mobile clinic outside a popular pub located at the Centropolis commercial lifestyle centre in Laval, with opening hours from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Thursday.

In Quebec, more than 80 per cent of the population over the age of 12 has received at least one dose of the vaccine, but young adults between the ages of 18 and 29 are lagging behind at 65 per cent.

The same is true in Laval, with those aged between 25 and 29 faring the worst at 61 per cent, followed closely by the 30 to 34 age group at 62 per cent.

With Fête nationale festivities and an all-important Habs game on the menu, the 3 Brasseurs Microbrewery Restaurant is likely to be a high-traffic area, with lots of potential arms to jab, officials said.

“We want to reach them where they are and so that why we launch a special clinic here at Centropolis in downtown Laval just to specially reach that age group,” said Dr. Jean-PIerre Trépanier, Director of the Laval regional health authority.

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The clinic, authorities say, is open to those receiving a first dose, with 200 vials of Pfizer available. Appointments are not required.

The pop-up clinics are being deployed to reach people where they are, as public health officials work towards achieving the benchmark of 75 per cent of the population vaccinated, currently that number stands at 67 per cent.

To date, Laval has administered 368,296 shots.