Vancouver Coastal Health is encouraging community members to get their monkeypox vaccine as the health authority has opened a new clinic on Friday.
“We are here offering protection to the community against monkeypox,” said Meaghan Thumath, Vancouver Coastal Health’s regional director of clinical disease control.
“We are encouraging people to come in and get their vaccine. We are offering first and second doses and we are very happy to be expanding access.”
Since July 1, Vancouver Coastal Health has administered nearly 16,000 doses of monkeypox vaccine, but officials said expanding access to the vaccine is something they have been working on.
In the weeks ahead, VCH will host pop-in immunization clinics at various locations across Vancouver including Halloween-themed events, bath houses, and in recent days, the SFU bookstore in Harbour Centre.
“If you missed us, we will be here for the next six weeks at SFU Harbour Centre,” said Thumath.
“We want people to get their second doses (if they received their first) to get longer lasting sustained protection.”
VCH officials said the health authority continues to work in close partnership with Health Initiative For Him (HIM) in the rollout of monkeypox vaccine clinics, given infections have disproportionately impacted men in the LGBTQ2 community.
HIM is a community-based organization that serves men and gender-diverse people and is adamant that those who are at greater risk should get vaccinated.
“The importance of these clinics is that we are able to get a lot of doses into arms very efficiently,” said Evan Matchett-Wong, a HIM program director.
“Also, the importance of the partnership between HIM and the health authority is that we are able to directly communicate with the community,” he said.
“People within the community know us, they see our work and many access our services already. They know this will be a safe environment for them to access the monkeypox vaccine.”
The health authority said it’s very easy to set up an appointment: just head over to the VCH website or the BC government’s Immunize BC webpage.