Saskatchewan children aged 5 to 11 receive first COVID-19 shot

Wednesday marked the first day that children ages five to 11 in Saskatchewan were able to get a shot of Pfizer’s COVID-19 pediatric vaccine.

Clinics in the province’s larger centres opened their doors to administer doses of the recently approved vaccine after the provincial government said this week that 112,000 pediatric doses will be shipped to Saskatchewan.

Families were seen walking to booked appointments at clinics set up at Prairieland Park in Saskatoon and the old Costco building near Victoria Avenue East in Regina.

“I was pretty excited when I got the news of it being approved and now I’m really emotional that it’s done,” said Brett Seidler, whose daughter was immunized at the Regina location.

The latest information posted by public health shows children age 11 and under account for almost 17 per cent of Saskatchewan’s total COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began.

It’s why health officials in the province are still encouraging families to schedule appointments so children can be protected by the vaccine, and in turn protect others around them.

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“Five to 11 vaccination is good news. It will bring our overall case numbers down and it will reduce transmission within the household, especially also protecting those under five who still can’t get vaccinated,” noted Saskatchewan’s chief medical health officer Dr. Saqib Shahab during a provincial COVID-19 update on Tuesday.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority shared that 16,388 pediatric vaccination appointments have been booked as of noon on Wednesday with many more bookings still available.

The pediatric vaccine will be available at clinics in rural and remote areas of the province starting Friday.

More information regarding child vaccine appointments can be found on the government website.

For families wanting to book appointments for siblings, they are asked to call the 1-833-SASK-VAX phone line.