vaccines Archives - News@91亚色 /news/tag/vaccines/ Thu, 23 Jan 2025 21:04:16 +0000 en-CA hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 91亚色 experts discuss Canada's campaign to discourage asylum claims, news outlets suing OpenAI, the Canada Post strike, and more /news/2024/12/06/york-experts-asylum-openai-canada-post/ Fri, 06 Dec 2024 16:25:53 +0000 /news/?p=21381 91亚色 experts discuss Canada's new ad campaign to discourage asylum claims, news outlets suing OpenAI, the Canada Post strike, and more.

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Professor Yvonne Su weighs in on听Canada launching a $250,000 global online advertising campaign to caution potential asylum-seekers about the challenges of making a refugee claim. The initiative comes as Canada grapples with a backlog of 260,000 refugee cases amid rising global displacement. Su听expresses skepticism about the global ad campaign's effectiveness and its broader implications. "We have people coming from places like Palestine and Lebanon, fleeing violence and instability. Campaigns like this, paired with stricter policies, send a very negative message that Canada is not upholding its humanitarian responsibilities," Su tells OMNI News, adding the campaign's messaging could impact Canada's global image as a compassionate and inclusive country. ""

Professor Pina D'Agostino talks to NPR about five Canadian news outlets suing OpenAI claiming it violated copyright law by using their articles to train its large language model. "We're talking about valuable content and who has the right to access and own that content," says D'Agostino. " Why not license the content?"

Professor David J. Doorey weighs in on the countrywide strike of Canada Post workers as it enters its third week. Negotiations for a new collective agreement were suspended last Wednesday after a government-appointed mediator said that Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) remained too far apart at the bargaining table. Doorey tells The Globe and Mail that under the Canada Labour Code, . Speaking to Benefits and Pension Monitor, Doorey raises concerns about Canada Post's decision to lay off employees amidst a labour action involving over 55,000 workers: "On its face, ."

Professor Dasantila Golemi-Kotra weighs in on data showing that more Manitobans have been vaccinated against the flu than COVID-19 this fall, even though the number of COVID infections recorded in Manitoba this season is well above the number of influenza cases. Golemi-Kotra says while Manitoba's overall vaccination rate didn't shock her, she was surprised the rate for seniors wasn't higher. "People don't see an urgency to get vaccinated [against COVID-19], because ," she tells CBC.

In an op-ed for Financial Post, Professor Fred Lazar discusses COP29, pledges for financial contributions and the need for accountability. "The recent UN climate summit, COP29, ended with rich countries promising to transfer $300 billion a year 鈥 a year! 鈥 to poor countries," writes Lazar. " None should go to national leaders or NGOs. And transfers should be conditioned on countries improving their score on TI鈥檚 corruption index, becoming 'more free,' as measured by Freedom House, and reducing their military spending."

Lazar also speaks with CBC for an article about Air Canada becoming the second major Canadian airline within the past year to from its cheapest fare offering. Other airlines already charging for carry-on luggage include Porter, Flair and Sunwing, which was bought by WestJet in 2023.

Professor Grant Packard weighs in on听Mastermind Toys, a beloved 40-year-old retailer known for educational toys that听filed for creditor protection a year ago citing increasing competition. The store currently has an 88-square-foot space at Union Station 鈥 a pop-up that will be gone shortly after Christmas. Mastermind is now hosting ticketed evenings marketed for date nights or gatherings among friends. Packard says these events accomplish something that should be a goal for Mastermind 鈥 .

Professor Vijay Setlur talks to The Globe and Mail about pro athletes supporting charities and causes with their time and money. "It helps build the equity in their brand, and also indirectly allows for promotion of their own initiatives," says Setlur. "It's an opportunity for them to ." Speaking to The Hockey News, Setlur also weighed in on the similarities between the new Toronto Sceptres' logo and a logo appearing on a uniform worn by Taylor Swift during her "Shake It Off" music video. Setlur believes . The reputability of the Professional Women's Hockey League as a women's sports league could dissuade Swift, says Setlur.

Professor Mary Forgarty comments on "The Culture" exhibit at the AGO. "Having a large-scale Hip Hop exhibit at the AGO for the first time like this still underscores Toronto鈥檚 role in shaping Hip Hop at a global level, and everyday Torontonians can ," Forgarty tells Now.

Graduate student Elio Iianacci interviews the actor, comedian and social media personality Pete Zias on creating Total Trash Live, his scene-stealing role in the horror movie Ganymede, and his upcoming role in the play Messy White Gays .

Do you have a new research study or an academic achievement to share? Contact media@yorku.ca with details. For daily 91亚色 in the News highlights, follow on X.

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Africa desperately needs mpox vaccines. But donations from rich countries won鈥檛 fix this or the next health听emergency /news/2024/09/09/africa-desperately-needs-mpox-vaccines-but-donations-from-rich-countries-wont-fix-this-or-the-next-health-emergency/ Mon, 09 Sep 2024 13:40:01 +0000 /news/?p=20621 Africa says it needs an estimated ten million doses of mpox vaccine to control this public health emergency. The situation is particularly concerning in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which has reported more than 27,000 suspected mpox cases and more than 1,300 deaths so far this year. Europe and the United States have promised to donate mpox vaccines. In an emergency, […]

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Africa says it needs an estimated  of mpox vaccine to control this public health emergency.

The situation is particularly concerning in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which  more than 27,000 suspected mpox cases and more than 1,300 deaths so far this year.

 and the  have promised to donate mpox vaccines. In an emergency, donations are welcome. But donations are a charity 鈥渂andaid鈥 solution that can鈥檛 be relied on.

Here鈥檚 what needs to happen next to ensure equitable access to mpox vaccines for this and the next health emergency.

How did we get here?

It鈥檚 been less than a month since the World Health Organization (WHO)  an international public heath emergency of international concern, after rising cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the potential for further spread.

Mpox, once known as monkeypox, has听听into countries that have never seen it before, possibly driven by a new, more infectious strain of the virus.

But the WHO has yet to approve mpox vaccines. This is necessary before groups such as  and  can begin to buy vaccines and start distributing them to affected countries that have not already independently approved them.

Once WHO has approved the vaccines, vaccine donations can also be distributed. These include  from the European Commission and another 40,000 from vaccine company Bavarian Nordic. The  50,000 doses from its national stockpile.

Even for countries such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which issued an emergency approval for the vaccines back in June, donated vaccines have only .

Other wealthy countries haven鈥檛 been so forthcoming with donating vaccines. Canada so far has  to sharing any of its several million doses. Australia has secured  for its population but hasn鈥檛 said anything about donations.

There are also  about how well the current vaccines will work against the new strain of the virus.

We鈥檝e seen this before

In 2022, the Democratic Republic of the Congo saw another . The US, Canada and the European Union were sufficiently worried that they  from Bavarian Nordic. But that left none for poorer countries.

If vaccines were available in Africa then, the current emergency could have been stopped in its tracks, said , acting director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

Low-income countries, especially those in Africa, are always at the end of the line when it comes to accessing vaccines, diagnostics and treatments.

This is a story that has been  in the past few decades 鈥 with HIV/AIDS, Ebola and most recently COVID.

Within the first year COVID vaccines were available, 75-80% of people in high-income countries had been vaccinated  fewer than 10% in low-income countries.

This maldistribution is not inevitable. It is a legacy of rich countries鈥 exploitation of the colonised world鈥檚 natural resources, a practice that continues under听听that keep low-income countries poor and dependent on wealthier ones.

Here鈥檚 what happened with COVID products

One key example is the international system of intellectual property governed by the World Trade Organization鈥檚 (WTO) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). This agreement gives companies control over the manufacturing and pricing of their products 鈥 including COVID vaccines 鈥 until their patents expire. As a result, only rich countries can afford these vaccines.

In 2020, India and South Africa, eventually supported by more than 100 other low- and middle-income countries,  for COVID medical products for a limited time. This would have freed up scientific knowledge, technology and other intellectual property to allow for scaling up the manufacturing of vaccines, diagnostics, treatments and other products necessary to deal with the pandemic.

Less than two years later, the WTO approved a听听of the original proposal. The waiver, which lasts just five years, only made exporting COVID vaccines slightly easier. It did not include any other COVID medical products including treatments and diagnostics, or transfer of know-how and technology needed to safely and effectively scale-up production in the fastest way possible.

We must make sure this does not happen again

Mpox and future infectious disease outbreaks are sure to occur as climate change and environmental destruction increase the risk of animal-to-human disease transmission.

Such outbreaks will not be prevented and controlled by relying on charity, voluntary sharing by pharmaceutical companies or the goodwill of countries at the WTO.

African countries have recognised the need to听听of their public health systems. To address the current global imbalances, they have recognised they need to boost their collective voice on global health matters and become efficient in preparing and responding to disease threats. There is a framework for action.

But the global maldistribution of medicines for emergencies is not a problem Africa can solve on its own. A new set of  is also needed to ensure all countries work cooperatively to prevent, prepare for and respond to pandemics and to share vaccines and other needed medical products. This is vital so the global vaccine inequity experienced during COVID doesn鈥檛 happen again.

WHO member states  such an agreement in December 2021. But they missed the deadline they had set for themselves to conclude it by mid-2024.

While not a pandemic at this stage, the current mpox public health emergency reinforces the need for a concerted global effort to negotiate arrangements that ensure a fairer distribution of vaccines, medicines and diagnostic tests.

All countries should take note. Perhaps the upcoming negotiation for the WHO pandemic agreement 鈥 which sets out how the world manages pandemic prevention, preparedness and response 鈥 is the perfect opportunity.

Co-authored by Professor Emeritus, Joel Lexchin, Health Policy and Management,听91亚色.

This article is republished from.

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How long immunity lasts after COVID vaccination /news/2024/04/19/how-long-immunity-lasts-after-covid-vaccination/ Fri, 19 Apr 2024 20:29:39 +0000 /news/?p=19638 The post How long immunity lasts after COVID vaccination appeared first on News@91亚色.

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COVID-19 booster immunity lasts much longer than primary series alone, 91亚色-led study shows /news/2024/04/18/covid-19-booster-immunity-lasts-much-longer-than-primary-series-alone-york-led-study-shows/ Thu, 18 Apr 2024 15:00:01 +0000 /news/?p=19625 A new study听coming out of 91亚色鈥檚 Centre for Disease Modelling in the Faculty of Science shows that immunity after a COVID-19 booster lasts much longer than the primary series alone. These findings are among other, sometimes 鈥渦nintuitive,鈥 revelations of how factors like age, sex and comorbidities do and don鈥檛 affect immune response.听

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Modelling suggests advanced age does not have a strong effect on immune response once comorbidities are controlled for

April 18, 2024, TORONTO 鈥 Thinking about getting a spring-time booster shot?  coming out of 91亚色鈥檚 Centre for Disease Modelling in the Faculty of Science shows that immunity after a COVID-19 booster lasts much longer than the primary series alone. These findings are among other, sometimes 鈥渦nintuitive,鈥 revelations of how factors like age, sex and comorbidities do and don鈥檛 affect immune response. 

The study鈥檚 authors  91亚色 Post Doctoral researchers Chapin Korosec and David Dick, Applied Mathematics Professor Iain Moyles and Professor James Watmough with the University of New Brunswick  used health data submitted to the Covid Immunity Task-Force project for more than 150 individuals who received either Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccines to look at how immunity holds up over time. 

Booster shots were found to have a much longer antibody half-life versus a primary vaccine series alone, a new study coming out of the Faculty of Science found.

鈥淥ur approach as mathematicians is to create mathematical models of the immune system, and then calibrate those models to health care data in order to advance our understanding of the human immune system. It was really interesting to see the SARS-CoV-2 booster dose have such a huge increase in protective longevity capacity as compared to the primary series of two doses,鈥 says Korosec, the study鈥檚 lead author. 

Published today in the journal Scientific Reports, the study used Canadian vaccine data collected from individuals living in long-term care, as well as frontline health-care workers working in long-term care and hospitals. 

Looking at the group as a whole, the median length for the antibody half-life immune response was 63 days for the primary series, and increased to 115 days for those who went on to receive their boosters, a statistically significant finding, says Korosec. 

It is well-established that age can affect how adept the body is at priming an immune response after vaccines, so much so that advanced age is considered a comorbidity itself, says Korosec. 

鈥淐hronological age is your time since birth. But you also have an immunological age, which is correlated to your chronological age, and is related to how your body loses its ability to prime against invading pathogens and produce antibodies as time marches on,鈥 explains Korosec. 鈥淲hat's convoluted is that as we age chronologically, the probability that we accrue diseases that can affect the immune system in unintuitive ways also increases.鈥 

Looking into this aspect, the researchers found that older adults did have a less long-lasting immune response, but once they controlled for other comorbidities such as hypertension, lung disease and cancer, age no longer had as significant of an influence on the immune response. 

Other interesting findings include a small, but statistically significant immune response for males versus females, and people with asthma having a longer lasting immune response 鈥 more durable, in fact, than those with hybrid immunity from vaccines and contracting COVID-19. 

鈥淲e found that some outcomes were surprising and worth further study, but of course we're not advocating any particular comorbidity is beneficial,鈥 says Dick. 鈥淲e don't have any information from this study on how asthma would affect the severity of the COVID-19 illness, for example.鈥 

Outside of the strict findings, the researchers also say the study points to the importance of interdisciplinary research and are excited about the possibilities for collaboration, with plans to open 91亚色鈥檚 School of Medicine in 2028.听

鈥淲hile we鈥檙e all from math and stats departments, the data comes from clinicians who went through medical school and are now professors studying immunology, and I think this study shows how people with different skill sets can come together and do really interesting science,鈥 says Korosec. 

Adds Moyles: 鈥淲e have a really top applied math program at 91亚色, and now the university has announced a medical school. Imagine these clinicians were at 91亚色 and we had access to the data on the ground floor. This would cut the research timeline by years and has huge potential for future interdisciplinary research at the university.鈥 

About 91亚色

91亚色 is a modern, multi-campus, urban university located in Toronto, Ontario. Backed by a diverse group of students, faculty, staff, alumni and partners, we bring a uniquely global perspective to help solve societal challenges, drive positive change, and prepare our students for success. 91亚色鈥檚 fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario鈥檚 Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education. 91亚色鈥檚 campuses in Costa Rica and India offer students exceptional transnational learning opportunities and innovative programs. Together, we can make things right for our communities, our planet, and our future.

Media Contacts: Emina Gamulin, 91亚色 Media Relations and External Communications, 437-217-6362, egamulin@yorku.ca

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$1.65M NSERC grant will help 91亚色 U develop future pharmaceutical technology disrupters /news/2023/04/18/1-65m-nserc-grant-will-help-york-u-develop-future-pharmaceutical-technology-disrupters/ Tue, 18 Apr 2023 14:24:10 +0000 /news/?p=3656 As one of today鈥檚 recipients of a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Collaborative Research and Training Experience (CREATE) grant worth $1.65 million over six years, 91亚色鈥檚 Distinguished Research Professor Sergey Krylov will lead a team of researchers and industrial leaders in training the next generation of technologically advanced graduates.

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Students will be trained to meet scientific and engineering challenges of tomorrow, drive and support pharmaceutical drug discovery and vaccine development in Canada

TORONTO, April 18, 2023 鈥 As one of today鈥檚 recipients of a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) grant worth $1.65 million over six years, 91亚色鈥檚 Distinguished Research Professor will lead a team of researchers and industrial leaders in training the next generation of technologically advanced graduates.

Master鈥檚 and PhD students will graduate from 91亚色 with the technical and managerial skills to take on leading positions in new entities to capitalize on disruptive technologies that could impact Canada鈥檚 research and development in the pharmaceutical industry.

鈥淭his grant will help train our students to become highly qualified personnel ready to meet difficult scientific and engineering challenges, while also helping to drive and support pharmaceutical drug discovery and vaccine development in Canada,鈥 says 91亚色 Vice-President Research and Innovation Amir Asif. 鈥淭his NSERC CREATE program taps into 91亚色鈥檚 expertise in bioanalytical methods and instrumentation and the University鈥檚 commitment to purposeful research. I congratulate Sergey Krylov on his successful application and collaboration.鈥

NSERC announced the winners of the CREATE program earlier today designed to give Canada鈥檚 researchers of tomorrow, not only improved mentoring, but a better training environment.

Sergey Krylov

The NSERC-funded industrial stream Technology-Enhance Pharmaceutical Discovery (TEPD) program at 91亚色, designed with industry input, will bring together some of Canada鈥檚 leading academics working on technological aspects of pharmaceutical discovery along with major companies driving or supporting this country鈥檚 pharmaceutical research and development.

鈥淏ig pharma is continually shifting tremendous costs and risks associated with pharmaceutical discovery to small-venture players, changing the landscape of pharmaceutical discovery in Canada,鈥 says Krylov of the Faculty of Science. 鈥淭he pressing needs of Canadian pharmaceutical research and development were what motivated our academic and industrial team members to come together to create a comprehensive training ecosystem capable of making a difference in this industry at the national level.鈥

The goal of this program is to enhance Canada鈥檚 global economic competitiveness by fueling innovation in the pharmaceutical industry, a sector of the economy which creates more research and development jobs in Canada than any other industry.

Trainees will conduct collaborative research in one of the seven pharmaceutical-discovery research themes, like the stages involved in pharmaceutical discovery used by developers of drugs, biologicals and vaccines. They will work with leading-edge technologies that could lead to potential drug discovery and vaccine development through the design and synthesis of DNA-encoded libraries (DELs), the selection of hits from DELs and their validation.

The program is comprised of collaborative research, joint seminars, summer school with hands-on and in-classroom workshops run by instructors from academia and industry to advance soft and professional skills of the trainees, summer research conferences and industrial internships in the research and development labs of the four industrial partners in Canada or the United States.

Students will graduate with superior industrial and academic research expertise, ready to meet the scientific and engineering challenges of Canada's new research landscape.

About 91亚色

91亚色 is a modern, multi-campus, urban university located in Toronto, Ontario. Backed by a diverse group of students, faculty, staff, alumni and partners, we bring a uniquely global perspective to help solve societal challenges, drive positive change, and prepare our students for success. 91亚色's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education. 91亚色鈥檚 campuses in Costa Rica and India offer students exceptional transnational learning opportunities and innovative programs. Together, we can make things right for our communities, our planet, and our future.

Media Contact: Sandra McLean, 91亚色 Media Relations, 416-272-6317,鈥sandramc@yorku.ca 

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Who is getting vaccinated has shifted as immunizations become more available /news/2022/09/28/who-is-getting-vaccinated-has-shifted-as-immunizations-become-more-available/ Wed, 28 Sep 2022 13:45:46 +0000 /news/?p=1826 Political ideology may be the main driver of who is getting a COVID-19 vaccine in the United States and it鈥檚 falling along racial lines with racial and ethnic minorities now being the most likely to roll up their sleeves, according to new research by a 91亚色 professor.

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TORONTO, Sept. 28, 2022 鈥 Political ideology may be the main driver of who is getting a COVID-19 vaccine in the United States and it鈥檚 falling along racial lines with racial and ethnic minorities now being the most likely to roll up their sleeves, according to new research by a 91亚色 professor.

This is a dramatic shift from the early days when COVID-19 vaccines were first available, and a lack of supply meant people in primarily Black and Latino areas of the United States were less likely to be vaccinated. Now counties that are primarily comprised of whites, are lagging behind in getting vaccinated.

It's a switch that runs counter to the belief that racial minorities shied away from vaccinations because of hesitancy and distrust with the medical establishment.

headshot of Prof Cary Wu
Cary Wu

"Although many thought a history of medical mistreatment caused Black communities to be skeptical of vaccines, the main reason for lower COVID-19 vaccination rates was unequal access to vaccines," says Assistant Professor of 91亚色's Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies.

"Recent research suggests vaccine hesitancy is not the root cause for lower uptake of vaccines in racial minorities. In fact, survey data show that Asian Americans are the group most willing to be vaccinated in the U.S. and Blacks have become more willing over time."

Today, the leading factors in who is willing to get a COVID-19 shot, more closely align with political leanings. Counties with large communities of Republicans 鈥 more likely to be whites living in more conservative suburban and rural areas 鈥 have lower vaccination rates than those with a high percentage of Democrats. Black Americans are more likely to have liberal Democratic ideologies, while white Democrats often live in racially diverse urban areas.

Wu looked at data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's weekly COVID-19 vaccination numbers and the U.S. Census Bureau鈥檚 2019 American Community Survey, which provides the racial composition of more than 3,000 U.S. counties, for his research. He compared the vaccination rates of counties with the highest compositions of Asians, Blacks, Hispanics and whites, and analyzed how those rates shifted as the pandemic wore on.

In the beginning, a clear pattern of lower vaccination rates in socio-economically disadvantaged Black and Hispanic counties and higher rates in more affluent Asian and white counties emerged. But as time went on and access to vaccines increased in all areas, albeit more slowly and unevenly in disadvantage counties, that pattern began to change.

"If you were to ask me now what the single biggest predictor of who will get vaccinated is, I would say political ideology,鈥 says Wu.

Conservatives are more wary of science and government which seems to fuel their unwillingness to be vaccinated. That means counties with higher percentages of white people are finding their vaccination uptake slowing, while counties with a higher composition of racial minorities, often with liberal leanings, are increasingly getting vaccinated.

鈥淪ocioeconomic disadvantage played a large role in who got vaccinated initially, but political ideology is now a major factor underlying vaccination rates across counties with varying levels of concentrations of different racial groups,鈥 he says. 鈥淓ven so, there is a need to pay attention to the particular vulnerability that members of different racial groups experience during pandemic. As newer vaccines become available, it will be important to ensure their equitable distribution as this should result in more widespread uptake.鈥

Acknowledging and addressing group-specific patterns and barriers for different racial groups is crucial for achieving effective and equitable responses and for reducing racial disparities during disease outbreaks in the future.

The paper, , was published in the September issue of the journal Social Science & Population Health.

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91亚色 is a modern, multi-campus, urban university located in Toronto, Ontario. Backed by a diverse group of students, faculty, staff, alumni and partners, we bring a uniquely global perspective to help solve societal challenges, drive positive change and prepare our students for success. 91亚色's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education. 91亚色鈥檚 campuses in Costa Rica and India offer students exceptional transnational learning opportunities and innovative programs. Together, we can make things right for our communities, our planet, and our future.

Media Contact:
Sandra McLean, 91亚色 Media Relations, 416-272-6317, sandramc@yorku.ca

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Study finds rate of immune/autoimmune adverse events after COVID-19 vaccine low /news/2022/07/04/study-finds-rate-of-immune-autoimmune-adverse-events-after-covid-19-vaccine-low/ Mon, 04 Jul 2022 12:00:00 +0000 /news/?p=1312 As fear of vaccine related adverse events is one of the main reasons for vaccine hesitancy, the authors of a new study published today in Frontiers in Immunology reviewed recent medical literature to see how often adverse events following immunization (AEFIs) occur.

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TORONTO, July 5, 2022 鈥 As fear of vaccine related adverse events is one of the main reasons for vaccine hesitancy, the authors of a new in Frontiers in Immunology reviewed recent medical literature to see how often adverse events following immunization (AEFIs) occur.

The researchers, who focused on three COVID-19 vaccines 鈥 Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca 鈥 found AEFIs are rare and, when they do occur, are usually non-life-threatening.

鈥淲e embarked on the review to help alleviate public concern about adverse events following immunization, increase the public鈥檚 willingness to be vaccinated and to guide physicians in rapidly identifying them,鈥 says Dr. Nicola Bragazzi, a Postdoctoral Fellow at 91亚色鈥檚 Faculty of Science and the study鈥檚 corresponding author.

Autoimmune AEFIs of the three COVID-19 vaccines include neurological ones, such as Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS), transverse myelitis, Bell鈥檚 palsy, and myocarditis, as well as the more recent concern of vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia/vaccine-induced prothrombotic immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT/VIPITT).

Bell鈥檚 palsy and myocarditis are seemingly the greatest risk when it comes to the mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines, however, in addition to their rarity, the disease course is mild and full recovery is the rule. In addition, GBS and VITT/VIPITT were found to be associated mainly with the adenovirus vector based COVID-19 vaccines, still with a low rate.

Overall, the study found that the rate of occurrence is either very low, similar to the occurrence rate in the general population or even much lower in comparison to the COVID-19 infection itself.

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91亚色 is a modern, multi-campus, urban university located in Toronto, Ontario. Backed by a diverse group of students, faculty, staff, alumni and partners, we bring a uniquely global perspective to help solve societal challenges, drive positive change and prepare our students for success. 91亚色's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education. 91亚色鈥檚 campuses in Costa Rica and India offer students exceptional transnational learning opportunities and innovative programs. Together, we can make things right for our communities, our planet, and our future.

Media Contact:
Sandra McLean, 91亚色 Media Relations, 416-272-6317, sandramc@yorku.ca

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Drive-through simulation helps agencies in Canada and U.S. to vaccinate more people /news/2021/03/22/drive-through-vaccine-clinic/ Mon, 22 Mar 2021 14:28:07 +0000 https://news.yorku.ca/?p=16040 TORONTO, March 22, 2021 鈥 As cities and towns across Canada and the United States grapple with the logistics of planning COVID-19 vaccine sites, 91亚色 professors have been busy helping to plan mass vaccinations using different methods, including drive-through vaccination centres.

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TORONTO, March 22, 2021 鈥 As cities and towns across Canada and the United States grapple with the logistics of planning COVID-19 vaccine sites, 91亚色 professors have been busy helping to plan mass vaccinations using different methods, including drive-through vaccination centres.

The vaccination drive-through simulation, which has now helped organizations in both countries to plan how to get as many people vaccinated as possible, was developed by Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies Associate Professor , associate director of the (ADERSIM) in collaboration with the Laboratory for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (), led by Professor of the Faculty of Science.

The has been listed as one of the best community models on the AnyLogic software website and the peer-reviewed paper has been downloaded around 5,000 times so far.

Aerial photo and video of vaccination clinic at Arnprior District High School in Renfrew, Ontario, by Scott McLeod, County of Renfrew Paramedic RPAS Program

DCIM100MEDIADJI_0059.JPG

鈥淭he development of simulation tools that enable planning and preparation are essential for the success of timely and efficient vaccine dispensing,鈥 says Asgary. 鈥淧lanning and operation of drive-through clinics for mass vaccination requires extraordinary advance planning and preparation at the local, national, and international levels. Health agencies are looking for tools that will help them with these planning and operation complexities.鈥

Asgary worked with Jeff Dodge, advanced care and community paramedic A/commander for the County of Renfrew Paramedic Service, to plan three vaccination drive-through clinics for frontline healthcare workers in Renfrew, Ontario, with the Arnprior & District Family Health Team this month.

鈥淓fficiency is everything. This model allows us to predict how many people we can vaccinate in an hour,鈥 says Dodge, who has used it to run three drive-through vaccination clinics for healthcare workers in the local Arnprior District High School parking lot. 鈥淲e started with 50 vehicles per hour at the first clinic and are now up to about 84 an hour and there is still room to go up a bit more.鈥

Each vehicle was registered in 45 seconds, plus another 60 seconds for the needle in the arm, followed by a 15-minute observation period.听At their last clinic, they vaccinated 265 people in two hours and more clinics are on the way.

The trick he says is to make sure the line up doesn鈥檛 block the adjacent highway, but the model factors that in. He鈥檚 now using the simulation tool to evaluate additional sites for drive-through vaccination clinics for the public. 鈥淚鈥檝e been using this model a lot. It鈥檚 really practical for planning, as well as ruling future sites in or out. I don鈥檛 know why everyone isn鈥檛 using it.鈥

Video clip of vaccination clinic at Arnprior District High School in Renfrew, Ontario by Scott McLeod, County of Renfrew Paramedic RPAS Program

, a non-profit health system based in Colorado with multiple hospitals and clinics, also reached out to Asgary when they were planning a mass vaccination drive-through with their partners and collaborators. The result is that they were able to vaccinate 10,000 people in one weekend or 12 hours. That worked out to 834 cars per hour and 22.4 minutes per car, including a 15-minute observation period.

They point to the customizable drive-through vaccination model and simulation tool, developed by Asgary, which they used to help with the planning, including the number of cars and people entering, as well as the average time spent in the drive-through.

鈥淒r. Asgary's simulation enabled us to predict bottlenecks and snags in our flow based on the complex and interdependent interactions at each step in the process.听Ultimately, simulation identified a major, previously unforeseen design flaw in our anticipated model, leading to substantial change and likely averting catastrophe. Thanks to our close collaboration, we were able to pull off the most efficient mass vaccination to date,鈥 says Dr. Daniel Resnick-Ault of University of Colorado鈥檚 Department of Emergency Medicine, one of the medical directors for the mass vaccination clinic.

The team is currently working with Cook County Health and other stakeholders to simulate and research their drive-through facility at the United Centre in planning and preparation for operation.

These are just two examples of how the is being used and modified depending on the specific parameters and goals of each organization.

鈥淰accinating everyone is one of the biggest public health challenges this decade,鈥 says Asgary. 鈥淭he advantages of a drive-through clinic are many, including a low risk for disease transmission for staff and public, a large number of people can be vaccinated, and it is useful for a geographically scattered population.鈥

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