GTA residents scramble to find COVID-19 vaccines at pop-up clinics

A uniquesort of scavengerhunt cropped upacross the Greater Toronto Area this weekend: the search for COVID-19 vaccines.

Lineups grew outside various pop-up clinicson Saturday and SundayasGTA residents heard word on social mediaor throughword-of-mouthof available vaccines and then scrambled to get their first jabs.

The province quietly announced Friday that140 pharmacies wouldoffer COVID-19 vaccines over the weekend to all adults in some Ontario hot spots,a shift made to align with provincial efforts to protect the most vulnerable amid a third wave of infections.

Ontario saidpeople wouldn't beasked to provide proof of their residence in a hot spot, but pharmacists wouldneed to verify recipients wereat least 18 years old.

Though there is a list onlineof pharmacies administering shots, non-profit organizations likeVaccine Hunters Canadacompiledinformation on where pop-up clinics werelocated and sharedit online.

It's because ofvolunteers like those that people stay informed, said Dr. AndrewBoozary, a Toronto physician andexecutive director of the social medicine program at the United Health Network.

But hesays the use of social media as a key communicator of important vaccine information poses an equality issue.

"We know that we need a more comprehensive system approach because we're losing a lot of people who aren't on social media, who obviously have other barriers in their lives about how to get out to the vaccine," said Boozary.

Moving forward, he said it's going to be crucial to ensure the message gets out topeople who need vaccines the most, specifically residents in high-risk neighbourhoods.

What the province needs, he added, is a doubling down on community organizations to provide support to those in need of a vaccine.

"That is one of the challenges we're still facing from an equity perspective,"Boozary said.

"[We need to ensure]that there are a whole range of mediums that the message is getting out and that we're helping people who need the vaccine."

Social media users pokefun at the scramble

Several TikTokusers poked fun atscenes of people flocking to various pop-up clinics.

Others spoke to Canada's vaccination rollout as a whole.

A DJ even set up at a small booth at a pop-up clinic in North York in hopes of entertaining those enduring long lines.

Despite the scramble, Boozarysaid it's a good thing that people are showing urgency when it comes to getting vaccinated.

"It's great to see people going out to get the vaccine ... and people willing to drive all over the city to do what they can to protect themselvesand their loved ones," he said.

'Please get vaccinated'

That message is shared by many leaders across the country.

Federal Health Minister Patty Hajduspoke with Rosemary Barton, CBC'schief political correspondent, on Sunday, urging all Canadians to get vaccinated as soon as they are eligible and able to do so.

"We keep saying,when it's your turn, please get vaccinated," she said.

Hajduadded that there's"clearly no silver bullet in the pandemic,"and that it's in "all of our hands" to stop a potential fourth wave of the virus.

"We can see the finish line, for sure, but that doesn't mean that the hard workends today, or ends in two months,"Hajdu said.

"We'll have this powerful tool of vaccinations, but all of us have to work together."