Just half of Canadians plan to get their flu shot this fall

A new survey from The Canadian Pharmacists Association (CPhA) found that only 50% of those polled plan to get their flu shot this season. That’s down six points from a survey done in 2021. "With fewer Canadians planning on getting a flu shot this year, we are very worried about the impact that could have on flu spread in our communities," Danielle Paes, chief pharmacist officer of the CPhA, said in a press release. Only 42% of respondents said they got the flu shot last year. The survey, which was done by Abacus Data on behalf of the CPhA and reached 1,500 Canadian residents 18-years-old and older in late August, was weighted to match census data and has a margin of error of +/- 2.53%, 19 times out of 20. It also found that 62% of those who said they were planning on getting their flu shots would get them at a pharmacist. That’s up six points from last year. In addition, over half said they would schedule a COVID booster with their flu shot, if that was an option. Read: New guidance: Should COVID vaccines and the flu shot be given together this fall? Paes said that issue might be compounded by the expected difficult flu season ahead. There has been an “unusual spike” in respiratory illnesses this summer, and data from the southern hemisphere suggests flu levels will be back this year at pre-pandemic rates. The flu seasons have been unusually low, which is thought to be due to social distancing, masking and other COVID restrictions. But this year, Australia had a severe, and early, flu season, which historically suggests the same could be coming for North America. “I feel a little bit of resignation that [flu season] is probably going to be bad,” Dr. Jeff Kwong, a public health and preventative disease specialist at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health in Toronto and a family doctor, said to the Ottawa Citizen. That could be especially difficult for the health care system, which is already under strain from COVID and related backlogs. "We are urging Canadians to get their flu shot once it's available this season," said Paes. "We need to do all we can to limit the spread of influenza within our communities and ensure that our already struggling health system is not overwhelmed by a sharp rise of flu cases this fall." Read: Four ways to plan now to maximize pharmacy growth this flu season

Just half of Canadians plan to get their flu shot this fall

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