Nova Scotia inching closer to vaccination target with 73.1 per cent now fully vaccinated; drop-in clinics continue
No appointments were necessary at a drop-in vaccine clinic Thursday at the IWK Health Centre.
Brian MacMullin was one of the Nova Scotians who got his second dose of vaccine at that location.
"I think the more people that do get the vaccine will help us a lot and we've done really well in Nova Scotia," said MacMullin.
Last week, the IWK vaccine clinic administered 300 shots in the three days it operated.
Nurse Shelly McHugh said health officials are still seeing people come in for their first dose of vaccine.
"About 50 per cent are first time, getting their first dose. So, we're just trying to make it as easy as possible as flexible as possible, because we really want people to get their vaccines," said McHugh.
As of Wednesday, 1,478,410 doses of vaccine have been administered. Of those, 709,884 Nova Scotians have received their second dose.
There are 173 active COVID cases in the province. Most of the new cases being reported are related to a cluster in the northern part of the province.
"We might be seeing that for a little while just because if somebody's already been exposed they might be a close contact and you might expect them to test positive in the near future even if they haven't yet already," said epidemiologist Kevin Wilson. "Probably the more concerning thing is untraced cases in the Halifax area which I think kind of flies under the radar a bit."
Wilson says every person who is vaccinated is a person who becomes drastically less likely to end up in hospital.
"The more people we get vaccinated is the more people we can keep out of the hospital and make any future outbreaks that happen much more easy to manage from a health care perspective," said Wilson.
Shelly McHugh said it's never too late to get vaccinated.
"We want to protect as many people as possible in Nova Scotia, we want to get our vaccine rates up to as high as possible so that our general population is protected, we can start to open up more and we can get back to living the way that we did before this virus happened," she said.
Public Health wants to have 75 per cent of the province's entire population double dosed. Right now, 73.1 per cent of Nova Scotians are fully immunized.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
'Sophisticated' cyberattacks detected on B.C. government networks, premier says
There has been a "sophisticated" cybersecurity breach detected on B.C. government networks, Premier David Eby confirmed Wednesday evening.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
Canucks claw out 5-4 comeback win over Oilers in Game 1
Dakota Joshua had a goal and two assists and the Vancouver Canucks scored three third-period goals to claw out a 5-4 comeback victory over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series Wednesday.
Nijjar murder suspect says he had Canadian study permit in immigration firm's video
One of the Indian nationals accused of murdering British Columbia Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar says in a social media video that he received a Canadian study permit with the help of an Indian immigration consultancy.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.