Immunization Program

Having your child vaccinated is the best way to prevent serious illnesses, including many that are easily spread in schools and day care centres. Vaccines make your child’s immunity stronger. In the first few years of life, your child is most at risk of contracting serious vaccine-preventable diseases. The vaccination schedule is designed to protect your child before they are exposed to such diseases. By immunizing your child on time, you can prevent illness and protect from serious diseases, usually for their lifetime. Sometimes they will need a “booster” vaccination to ensure the protection is long-lasting. Usually, these vaccinations are done at routine childhood visits.

Helpful Resources: 

Childhood vaccination schedule (Government of Canada)

Ontario’s Routine Immunization Schedule (Ministry of Health)  

Immunization Fact Sheets and Patient Tools (Ministry of Health)

A Parent’s Guide to Vaccination (Health Canada) 

Immunize Canada – For the Public

Vaccines help adults stay healthy too. Regardless of age, vaccination provides the most effective protection against disease. With certain vaccines, adults require a booster shot in order to maintain immunity. Any adults who were not adequately immunized as children are at risk of contracting vaccine-preventable diseases, and can also infect others. It is important that your vaccinations are up-to-date to ensure adequate protection for yourself and your family members. 

Ontario’s Routine Immunization Schedule (Ministry of Health)

Immunization Fact Sheets and Patient Tools (Ministry of Health)

Immunize Canada – For the Public

Herpes zoster, also known as shingles, is a painful disease that results from the reactivation of the varicella-zoster virus (VZV), the same virus that causes varicella (chickenpox). After you have the varicella (chickenpox) infection, the virus lies dormant for many years. It can become active again and present itself in the form of shingles. Symptoms of shingles include headache, fever and a painful rash that develops on one side of the face or body. You may feel itching, tingling, burning or pain prior to the appearance of the blistering rash. The most frequent complication of shingles is prolonged and severe pain known as post-herpetic neuralgia. One in three Canadians develops shingles in their lifetime, with the incidence and severity increasing after age 50.

Shingles vaccination is recommended for people 50 years of age and older. Shingrix® can reduce the risk of shingles by over 90%. It requires two doses to be given two to six months apart. Common side effects are pain, redness and swelling at the site of injection, as well as muscle pain, headache, fatigue, nausea and fever. These side effects may be bothersome and typically last up to 3 days. The cost of the two dose series is approximately $342.00. Patients age 65-70 may be eligible to receive Shingrix® publicly funded at no cost. Shingrix® can be given in patients previously vaccinated with Zostavax® and in patients who have previously had shingles.

Ontario’s Routine Immunization Schedule (Ministry of Health) 

Immunization Fact Sheets and Patient Tools (Ministry of Health)

What is pneumococcal disease?

Pneumococcal disease is an infection caused by bacteria called Streptococcus pneumoniae (or pneumococcus). Pneumococcal infections can range from ear and sinus infections, to pneumonia and infections in the bloodstream, and meningitis. 

What are the risks?

Each year, about 3,000 cases of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) are reported in Canada. Most of these cases happen in young children or elderly people. Anyone can get IPD, but some people are at higher risk of getting it, including:

• children under five years of age, especially those under two
• adults who are 65 years of age or older
• people with certain medical conditions (for example, heart disease, diabetes or lung disease)
• people with a cochlear implant
• people with a weakened immune system or who are immunosuppressed 
• people with a non-functioning or missing spleen  

What vaccines are available? 

For children, pneumococcal vaccination is offered during the publicly funded routine infant immunization program in Ontario at the ages of 2 months, 4 months and 12 months. The vaccine that is used at present in Ontario is Prevnar 13. 

For adults, there are presently two available pneumococcal vaccines: 

• Pneumovax 23 (polysaccharide)- offered publicly funded at the age of 65 years. 
• Prevnar 20 (conjugate)- not presently publicly funded. It is a one-dose series with a cost of approximately $156.00. It is recommended for the following adults who have not been vaccinated previously with a pneumococcal vaccine:
  • Adults 65 years of age and older
  • Adults 50-64 years of age at higher risk of pneumococcal disease (e.g. chronic heart disease, diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease, chronic liver disease, chronic lung disease including asthma requiring medical care in the preceding 12 months, etc.)  
  • Adults 18 to 49 years of age with immunocompromising conditions (e.g. sickle cell disease, immunocompromising therapy, HIV infection, stem cell transplant recipient, malignant neoplasms including leukemia and lymphoma, solid organ transplant, etc.) 
  • Adults 65 years of age and over who have previously received Pneumovax 23 alone or both Prevnar 13 and Pneumovax 23 if it has been at least five years since their last dose. 

Helpful Resources: 

Ontario’s Routine Immunization Schedule (Ministry of Health)  | health.gov.on.ca

Pneumococcal Vaccine: Canadian Immunization Guide (Health Canada) | canada.ca

Influenza (or “the seasonal flu”) is a respiratory illness that spreads easily. It is caused by the influenza virus. Anyone can get the flu. The flu leads to thousands of deaths each year, mostly among the elderly, but young children and those with chronic health conditions are also at risk. In Canada, the flu season usually runs from November to April. One of the most effective ways to protect yourself from the flu is to get the flu shot each year in the fall.

At the Happy Valley Family Health Team, we offer the seasonal influenza vaccine through community based walk-in clinics and during routine clinic appointments between the months of November to April. If you receive your flu shot elsewhere, please kindly notify our office to keep your records up to date.

Helpful Resources:

Vaccines and Immunization: The Flu (Ministry of Health) – Flu-facts | ontario.ca

Please note: We do not offer travel vaccine consultation or administration. If you have a travel-related immunization question or need, please visit your nearest travel vaccination clinic. 

For your nearest Travel Health Clinic –  CLICK HERE