WINNIPEG - The province says its COVID-19 immunization clinics will be available at schools across Manitoba this week.
Manitoba’s COVID-19 Vaccination Task Force says clinics will be hosted during school hours at every school where there are students who were born on or before Dec. 31, 2009. A number of school clinics will be available after class pop-up clinics for parents, students, and the general public. After-school vaccination times can be booked online, through the call centre at 1-844-MAN-VACC (8222), or during walk-in availability.
The Manitoba Government says the clinic sites are slated for double-duty as places where students can also catch up on their routine childhood vaccinations. Vaccination Task Force Medical Lead Dr. Joss Reimer says she expects the first clinics to open on Wednesday, and will likely operate for four to six weeks.
Reimer says parents and guardians will be notified when a clinic is coming to their school, and informed consent will work differently than it did at other vaccine clinic sites. While youth 16 and up will be considered mature minors under provincial legislation, and able to sign their own consent forms for shots during school hours, those under the age of 16 will need written consent from a parent or guardian. Parents and guardians can be immunized with their children or attend their child’s immunization during after-school pop-up clinics.
The last group to become eligible in the early months of the vaccine rollout, as of this past week around 73 per cent of Manitobans ages 12 to 17 had received one COVID-19 vaccine dose, and around 65 per cent had received both; compared to 84.1 per cent and 79.2 per cent of all eligible Manitobans respectively.
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