'Measles capital of North America': Alberta doctors sound alarm on immunization
The Canadian government urges measles vaccination for all eligible individuals, including two doses at 12 and 18 months of age.
Article content
Smith said the provincial government is now allowing everyone to get their two doses by the age of two.
Article content
'Before we waited until kindergarten, but now so many kids are going into daycare, so we've moved that back, but we also make a microdose available to those parents who want that extra protection and so they can get a smaller dose,' she said.
Article content
For now, Alberta is reaping the benefits of days when vaccine rates were higher.
Article content
Smith said she's 'pleased to see that we still have about a 90 per cent overall vaccination rate by the time young people get to be 17 years old — 95 per cent is what they recommend. But we're glad to see that the message is getting out,' she said.
Article content
Child, adult, pregnant woman alike, if you're in the room with an infected person and you're non-immune, your chances of getting the airborne illness is very, very high, said Ladha.
Article content
Article content
'That represents a perfect storm where our children, grandchildren, nephews and nieces and family members will be at risk, increased risk in getting measles because they've gone to school in September or because they've brought it home from school to infect the children who are still at home,' Talbot said.
Article content
There have been recent ICU admissions with measles victims requiring care, said Dr. Lynora Saxinger, an infectious diseases specialist with the University of Alberta.
Article content
'I have just recently been called about pregnant women who have measles in pregnancy. I've also been called about transplant patients with measles.
Article content
'The likelihood that there will be severe outcomes with really significant critical illness or death is just going up, because the longer we have circulation of disease and more cases that happen, that's basically just a matter of numbers and risk, and it's just a matter of time, unfortunately,' Saxinger said.
Article content
Article content
Within the past few months, the province's health zones have stopped posting the areas of exposure to measles, where individuals travelled from their doctor's office to a lab to a radiology site to a store.
Article content
'We don't see that from those sites anymore, because the volume is simply too high for them to be able to catch up. And so we just know that there's more transmission and more cases than are even being detected, and we're probably seeing, to some extent, the tip of the iceberg on the hospital side,' she said.
Article content
Practical considerations
Article content
As a doctor, Talbot said, he's an optimist in that he believes public health threats can be addressed — noting that more than 90 per cent of Albertans got at least one COVID vaccination during the pandemic.
Article content
All American states have laws requiring certain vaccines for students to attend school, although a number of states allow for exemption on the basis of religion or philosophy, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Article content
In Canada, Ontario and New Brunswick have made immunizations mandatory for school attendance.
Article content
It may be time for a public debate on requiring measles immunizations for school attendance in Alberta, Talbot said.
Article content
'The second (way to address school spread of measles) is to make sure that people are aware that if measles does strike a school and starts to spread, that it may be necessary to send unimmunized students and unimmunized staff home so that they are protected for the time until all of those people who have been exposed are safe to return,' he said.
Article content
Saxinger said for those who aren't immune, the current guidance for quarantine after measles exposure is 21 days.
Article content
'That's to try to contain the infection and reduce the successive rings of spread — and that's very disruptive, if you think about that occurring in a school or in a workplace. It is a really strong practical argument to make sure that your immunization is up to date, and the immunization of your children is up to date,' Saxinger said.
Article content
Article content
The experts agreed there's a unique window in the next month.
Article content
'It takes time to book an appointment, and then the child's body needs 10 to 15 days to get the maximum protection. So book your appointment now for anyone going back to school and anyone under the age of five who's not immune in your household. That's the most important back-to-school preparation you can do even more than buying a backpack or a lunch box,' Talbot said.
Article content
'It will ensure that they do not get measles, they do not get hospitalized, they do not go deaf or worse. It will give you the peace of mind that no matter what other people have done or failed to do, your child is safe. It will make your family and your community safer. And finally, it means that you will be able to say that you know the science and you've been smart in protecting your child, maybe not smart enough to get you on Jeopardy, but smart enough to show that you know what's important to the health of your children,' he said.
Article content
Article content
Article content
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Toronto Star
2 hours ago
- Toronto Star
Manitoba reaches settlement with family of woman who died after halted medical flight
WINNIPEG - The Manitoba government says it has settled a lawsuit with the family of a woman who died during the COVID-19 pandemic while in the process of being transferred out of province due to a shortage of hospital beds. Matt Wiebe, minister of justice and the province's attorney general, confirmed a settlement was recently reached with the family of Krystal Mousseau more than two years after Mousseau's mother first sued the provincial government and health agencies.
Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Dying early, suffering in silence: the harms of toxic masculinity
Opinion When I was growing up, the two messages I heard most were 'real men don't cry' and 'real men don't show weakness.' These ideas were conveyed to me and every single other male I knew at school, during sports, and in virtually every movie and TV program we watched. These messages taught me not to show emotion or ask for help, and judge those who did as weak, to question their virility, masculinity and sexuality. This led to bad choices and behaviour that continue to infect generations of men and leads to bullying, harm and violence. Some of the worst harm occurs among men themselves. Alongside my colleague John Oliffe of the University of British Columbia Men's Health Research Program, we have published a report for the international organization Movember (best known for international moustache campaigns) titled 'The Real Face of Men's Health: the 2025 Canadian Report.' Available online, our findings identify how and why men in Canada are dying prematurely, suffering in silence, and how this crisis is costing Canada billions of dollars in resources and infrastructure. We also give recommendations and call for a national action plan to deal with the issue of male health. In the report, we point out that two in five (37 per cent) Canadian men die prematurely (before 75 years old) and these deaths are, for the most part, preventable. In fact, Canadian men live to an average age of 79.5 – almost five years younger than women. The two leading causes of premature death in Canadian men are cancer and heart disease, which can be dealt with simply by understanding male health, proper screening and encouraging men to see their doctor regularly. The next leading causes are accidents and unintentional injuries — also solved with an eye on good health and getting help — but a sense of humility and humanity, too. A whopping 50 per cent more males than females die from preventable causes or issues that can be treated effectively and on a timely basis. The next causes of male premature death though are the most complicated and the hardest to address. These are deaths caused by alcohol and drugs (particularly opioids) and suicide. In Canada, 72 per cent of all accidental opioid toxicity deaths are men; nearly 75 per cent of suicides in the country involve males. Instead of asking for help while in mental crisis, men most often turn to substances and, if untreated, harm and kill themselves. Well-funded, resourced, and competent mental health institutions and initiatives that understand the specific needs of men are crucial if male deaths are to be prevented. Necessarily, these must include the many sexualities, cultural specificities, and other contexts of that make up male and male-related identities. In nearly all of these cases and statistics, Indigenous men are two to five times higher than these averages, with the leading causes of male death due to historical trauma, poverty, legitimate and historical mistrust of the medical system, and poor access to health care. For more than two centuries, Indigenous women and men have experienced avalanches of imposed norms and beliefs from newcomers who brought with them foreign ideas based in gender and sexuality. These were turned into practices and policies with the goal of undermining traditional identities while replacing them with ideas often traumatizing. The Indian Act of 1867, for example, defined men as the sole rights holders in communities, property owners and heads of households while denying women the same rights while instilling rules that tried to control female behaviour. Gender normativity was so ingrained in the treatment of Indigenous communities that when the Indian Act was amended in 1884, to allow status Indian men to will their estate to their wives, it was only if the Indian agent determined she was of 'good moral character.' Indigenous men, in many ways, were therefore taught that patriarchy was normal, to feel and act entitled, and many gained privilege and power. Anyone who rejected or resisted acting in the ways males were expected to act was punished and ostracized. This meant that, for some Indigenous men, abuse and trauma became a language of expression. For others, the language became work, abandonment, and silence. It is only now that healing programs and initiatives have begun to help Indigenous men become the fullest sons, nephews, fathers, uncles, and grandfathers they can be. Still, Indigenous life expectancy continues to be much lower than the Canadian average: 72.8 years for First Nations males, 78.9 years for Métis males, and 68.8 years for Inuit males. Premature male death is costing Canada dearly. The report finds that poor male physical and mental health and premature death costs the Canadian economy $12.4 billion in health care costs, lost productivity, and caregiver time and supports. Speaking of caregivers, these are often disproportionately women. Everyone pays when men are taught not to cry or ask for help. Let's try something else. Niigaan SinclairColumnist Niigaan Sinclair is Anishinaabe and is a columnist at the Winnipeg Free Press. Read full biography Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Manitoba reaches settlement with family of woman who died after halted medical flight
WINNIPEG – The Manitoba government says it has settled a lawsuit with the family of a woman who died during the COVID-19 pandemic while in the process of being transferred out of province due to a shortage of hospital beds. Matt Wiebe, minister of justice and the province's attorney general, confirmed a settlement was recently reached with the family of Krystal Mousseau more than two years after Mousseau's mother first sued the provincial government and health agencies. Elaine Mousseau alleged that cuts to health care and improper medical decisions contributed to her daughter's death in May 2021. Mousseau was in intensive care with severe COVID-19 pneumonia and died after being taken by ambulance to a waiting airplane that was to take her to Ottawa. Details of the settlement were not made available. Wiebe says he is pleased the province has been able to reach an agreement with the Mousseau family. 'While it can't bring back their loved one or repair the harms done to their family, we hope this agreement brings them clarity and a sense of closure,' Wiebe said in a statement on Friday. 'Our government remains committed to rebuilding health care in northern Manitoba and across our province.' Mousseau died on May 25, 2021, after an aborted attempt to fly her from an intensive care unit in Brandon, Man., to a hospital in Ottawa. The province, under the previous Progressive Conservative government, sent dozens of intensive-care patients to other provinces that spring due to a shortage of beds as COVID-19 cases rose and hospitals struggled to deal with an influx of people needing care. Elaine Mousseau alleged that the government and Shared Health, the provincial body that co-ordinates many health services, failed to provide proper care. Shared Health said on Friday that any settlement is confidential in nature and it would not be commenting on the matter. Elaine Mousseau's lawyer was not immediately made available to comment on the settlement. A letter from the regional authority in western Manitoba to the family shortly after Krystal Mousseau's death, which was released publicly, said the transport team did not have a piece of equipment that would let them constantly monitor Mousseau's blood pressure, so a blood-pressure cuff was used instead. Mousseau was also being given at least one medication at the wrong rate, the letter stated. The lawsuit alleged the Tory government ignored warnings in 2019 when it privatized some air ambulance services. The government also created a scenario where hospitals couldn't deal with an influx of patients when it reduced the number of critical care beds in 2019, the lawsuit claimed. The statement of claim also alleged staff at the hospital allowed Mousseau to leave while she was in unstable condition and at severe risk. Mousseau showed high blood pressure and a sudden elevated heart rate shortly before she was put into the ambulance on the way to the airport, the statement of claim alleged. She went into cardiac arrest while in the ambulance, was sent back to hospital, and suffered another cardiac arrest and multiple organ failure before being pronounced dead the next day, the document said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 25, 2025.
