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Vaccines, low COVID case counts increase Father’s Day hope, but risk is still there - Castlegar News

Vaccines, low COVID case counts increase Father’s Day hope, but risk is still there - Castlegar News

Vaccines, low COVID case counts increase Father’s Day hope, but risk is still there - Castlegar News
Jun 16, 2021 2 mins, 2 secs

People line up to get their COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination centre, Thursday, June 10, 2021 in Montreal.

Last year’s Father’s Day snuck up quickly on Raywat Deonandan, coming five weeks after the birth of his first child Harrison, and three months into a global pandemic.

While Canada’s first wave of COVID-19 had started to recede by June 2020, experts like Deonandan, an epidemiologist with the University of Ottawa, were still learning about the new virus then.

A year later, with several effective vaccines available, Canada’s COVID-19 burden has been substantially alleviated, opening opportunities for families to enjoy this Father’s Day in safer ways than holidays before.

Risk is still there for anyone who gathers, and public health measures shouldn’t be tossed aside, Deonandan said.

“Maybe I should take note of the fact that this will be the end of my pandemic Father’s Days and celebrate in some strange way,” he said with a laugh.

The vaccination status of patriarchs and their progeny will impact risk, he said, as will the level of COVID-19 circulating in the community.

Regions with recent outbreaks, including Ontario’s Waterloo health unit, should be more cautious regardless of their inoculation levels, Deonandan said, likening vaccine protection to wearing rainboots in a flood.

Sumon Chakrabarti, an infectious disease specialist in Mississauga, Ont., said that while Father’s Day gatherings will carry some risk, low case counts and high vaccine uptake means family events are safer now than they were just weeks ago.

While young children who aren’t vaccinated can pose a risk to grandparents, danger is lessened when community spread is low, Chakrabarti said.

That means Father’s Day gatherings could include a smattering of fully, partially or non-vaccinated participants, which Chakrabarti said can dictate how safe an event will be.

“But if more people in the group have one or two doses, the risk is not zero but it’s incrementally reduced.”.

Ilan Schwartz, an infectious disease expert with the University of Alberta, said people will have to do their own “risk calculus” before popping in on Papa, adding the benefit of being together may outweigh the danger for some families.

Schwartz said what we know about Delta cases is concerning, but it’s “not necessarily reason to panic.” That could change if more outbreaks arise

Summarized by 365NEWSX ROBOTS

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