To begin, Schreiner thanks everyone for sticking with the public health guidelines, and we owe it to the elderly and frontline workers to stay the course and get the numbers down.

If you have expertise in medicine or public health, bad news because Dr. Mercer's tried to dumb this down as much as possible.

This is the current picture. Mercer calls it a "significant health episode", but notes that WDG has fared better than some of our neighbours in the crisis.

This is what the year's looked like. Note where we were in March and where we are now.

Mercer notes that there's been a drastic shift in who's getting COVID last March. In the beginning it was seniors over 80 and much of that was from outbreaks; now it's younger people, and these are from community cases (get togethers).

Outside of LTC, the biggest outbreaks are at big manufacturers or congregate settings like the university. Interestingly, we haven't seen high numbers of cases in teachers.

Everyone's scared of getting COVID, but the risk is not equal.

tl;dr

Mercer notes that there are presently two vaccines: the Pfizer one and the Moderna one. She notes that there are 60 other vaccines currently in some stage of development.

FYI: There are 100 people on this Zoom call (including members of Schreiner's staff and staff at the WDG office).

#Science.

More #Science. The proteins (spikes) on the virus are keys that attach themselves to receptors like the ones in your nose. So for goodness sake #WearAMask

How immunity works.

Who can get the vaccine? Adults older than 16 (Pfizer) and 18 (Moderna). There are studies being done right now on the efficacy for children 12 or older.

What about those that can't get the vaccine? People who are pregnant, immune deficient, or have an autoimmune condition were not included in the study. Check with your family physician if there's any uncertainty about whether you're able to get the vaccine before you get it.

Current vaccine rollout timetable. Mercer notes that she doesn't get to decide who gets the vaccine and when (though she does offer advice to the Provincial government in her capacity).

Mercer says that there will likely be no new first dose of the vaccine in WDG until the third week in February due to delays in production at Pfizer's Belgian plant. Still some residents and staff in LTC and hospitals that have not yet got full course.

Mercer says that the tricky part is that they can't move the vaccine from place to place, which is one of the challenges rolling out the program. She says it seems unlikely that we'll get another vaccine for the time being.

Mercer says WDG staff are "trying to make very ethical decisions" about who gets the vaccines and in what order.

She references this: https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/b-c-couple-accused-of-flying-to-yukon-to-get-covid-19-vaccine-to-appear-in-court

So far:

Mercer notes that WDG is the only health unit in Ontario that directly receives the vaccine. Usually, the vaccine is delivered to the local hospital and delivered from there.

Now we will deal with vaccine myths, starting with "it was developed too fast."

Mercer says he's very satisfied with the science. Because COVID was a global issue money and resources weren't a problem and everyone immediately got behind the effort, which is not always the case.

Mercer says mRNA tech has been around for a while, it need money and a reason to make it actionable. Also, it does not change your DNA. She says it's a "SnapChat message that tells your body what to do and it's gone."

Even if you've had COVID, Mercer says you should get the vaccine. Still big questions about how long people can be immune to COVID before they get it again. There's no harm or risk getting a jab if you've had COVID.

Get show, get back to normal? Nope, you've still got to follow all public health advise because not everyone is getting the vaccine at once. We also don't know if the vaccine prevents us from spreading the disease even though it protects you from it.

That's it for the presentation, and we will now move on to questions asked by people taking part in the call via the chat.

Are there any side effects from the vaccine? Mercer says there are, but not too different from most vaccines, and better than the side effects from the Shingles vaccine.

So sore arm is usual, mild fever and aches and pains possibility.

Mercer says she hasn't seen any adverse reactions in WDG.

Vaccine efficacy on variants? Mercer says U.K. will likely be covered, South Africa is unsure. Good news, the nature of mRNA vaccines makes it easier to adjust the vaccine recipe to attack variants to the disease.

How long does it take for the shot to take effect? 50-80 per cent of people are developing immunity after two weeks. 90 per cent after four weeks.

Why not approved for kids? Mercer says it wasn't studied in kids, so it's not approved for kids.

Will this end up being an annual vaccine like the flu shot?

Mercer says its a good question, but doesn't know the answer. It could be a shot that lasts a few years, or longer. Could be like a tetanus shot every 5 years, but that might depend on how the virus mutates.

Will WDG Public Health be setting up vaccine clinics? Mercer notes that in their 3 locations they have more capacity than the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, but it's a big conversation because they need large facilities. Lots of planning right now.

Will people need a referral from doctors going into Phase #2? Mercer says there's a booking system, and since its age based there will only be a proof of age needed. Clinics will not be set up for complex medical discussions, so you need to understand risks in advance.

No waiting list either.

Will people in large manufacturing plants be prioritised? Mercer says that's something that the Province will determine, but she agrees that should be looked at because of the outbreaks. Anything to get the vax out as quickly and safely as possible + available supply.

Guidelines for March Break? Mercer says she thinks the advice against travelling will remain in place, and tells people to *really* think twice before travelling. "This is not the year for that," she adds.

And that's the end of the town hall.

If that all's not good enough for you though, Dr. Mercer will be back on the February 10 episode of the Guelph Politicast for the winter edition of "Still COVID."