A new national poll offers both reassurance and a warning for Canada’s healthcare system. While most Canadians continue to trust vaccines, confidence has declined over the past five years — underscoring the growing importance of credible, face-to-face medical guidance from qualified healthcare professionals.

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Every fall, Canadians line up for their annual flu shot — an essential tool to prevent serious illness, hospitalizations, and complications like pneumonia. But what most people don’t realize is that seasonal influenza vaccines take more than six months to manufacture, and the way they’re made hasn’t changed much since the 1940s.

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Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Kieran Moore, is sounding the alarm: Canada urgently needs a national immunization schedule and centralized vaccine registry to protect against vaccine-preventable diseases that are resurging across the country, such as measles.

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For pregnant individuals planning travel, especially internationally, assessing infectious disease risk is a top priority. Since the start of the pandemic, Destinations Travel Clinic (DTC) has consistently advised on the heightened dangers of COVID-19 infection during pregnancy, which include increased risks of severe illness, maternal and infant morbidity, and preterm birth.

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As a premier travel health provider, Destinations Travel Clinic (DTC) is committed to protecting our travelers against common, yet severe, global health risks, including influenza. While the annual flu shot is a standard recommendation, new research is highlighting additional, significant protective benefits—particularly for our senior travelers (aged 65 and older).

A recent secondary analysis of the large Danish DANFLU-2 randomized trial, published in JAMA Network Open, found that the High-Dose Inactivated Influenza Vaccine (HD-IVV) may offer protection against serious cardiovascular complications, such as myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) and pericarditis (inflammation of the sac around the heart), compared to the standard-dose vaccine (SD-IVV).

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For policymakers & health leaders

• Harmonize Canada’s immunization schedule and connect provincial registries so data flows and gaps are visible in real time.
• Fund school-based catch-ups and outreach where coverage has slipped post-pandemic.
• Maintain and strengthen school-entry mandates to keep herd immunity above thresholds for hyper-contagious diseases like measles.

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What’s happening

Florida leaders announced plans to eliminate all state vaccine mandates, including requirements for school entry—an unprecedented break from decades of public-health practice. The proposal faces legislative hurdles but signals a dramatic shift with national implications. Medical groups warn it will invite outbreaks of measles, mumps, and polio.
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The reality check
Canada has maintained measles elimination since 1998, but 2025 has brought the largest outbreak since elimination, with cases across multiple provinces. If transmission persists beyond October 2025, Canada risks losing its elimination status—an avoidable setback tied to immunity gaps.
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Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health is urging a national immunization schedule and interoperable vaccine registry, noting Ontario lags other provinces that have modernized records. A coordinated system helps close coverage gaps, speed outbreak response, and give families easy digital access to their records.

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In a world where health information can feel overwhelming, separating fact from fiction is essential. Recent statements by U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. have sparked debate about the effectiveness of mRNA vaccines, leading to confusion and misinformation. At Destinations Travel and Immunization Clinic, we believe in empowering our patients with accurate, evidence-based knowledge. Let’s take a closer look at the facts surrounding mRNA vaccines.
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As we head into the fall and winter season, respiratory viruses always return with greater intensity. This year, we have an important opportunity to protect ourselves and our loved ones—not just from the flu, but also from COVID-19 and RSV (respiratory syncytial virus).

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The recent attack on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has shocked the public health community—but for many healthcare professionals, it was not entirely surprising.

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As COVID-19 continues to evolve, new variants like XBB and JN.1 have become dominant. Vaccines must adapt—and so should we. At Destinations Travel and Immunization Clinic, we help ensure travelers stay protected not just from jet lag and routine risks, but also from viruses that are very much still with us.
A recent U.S. study evaluated how effective the 2023–2024 COVID-19 vaccines (monovalent XBB.1.5) were in preventing serious illness and medical visits. The study involved hundreds of thousands of adult patients from urgent care centers, emergency departments, and hospitals.
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At Destinations Travel and Immunization Clinic, we often hear a common concern from thoughtful, caring parents: “Are children getting too many vaccines, too quickly?” It’s a fair question. In 1986, a child would receive 11 vaccine doses by age 18. Today, it’s 50 to 54 doses, depending on the child’s age, vaccine schedule, and flu shot timing. But here’s what most people (and even many health professionals) don’t realize:

Today’s vaccines actually expose your child’s immune system to far fewer antigens than vaccines did in the past.
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On May 14, 1796, Edward Jenner, an English physician, performed an experiment that would transform the world of medicine forever—and lay the foundation for modern immunology.

The Observation That Sparked a Revolution

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Planning a trip while managing an immune condition? The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) now strongly recommends that all immunocompromised adults age 18+ receive two doses of the shingles (herpes zoster) vaccine—even if you’re under age 50.
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Ottawa Public Health Investigating First Confirmed Cases of Measles

Risk of Exposure to Measles for Residents of Ottawa

Ottawa Public Health (OPH) is investigating the City’s first confirmed cases of measles since
2019. An adult and a child, both residents of Ottawa, are believed to have acquired measles
while traveling internationally. OPH is notifying individuals who may have been exposed to these
confirmed cases of measles. This public service announcement is for those who we are unable
to reach directly or for whom no contact information is available. At this time, the risk to the
general population remains low.

Possible Exposure Locations and Times

Individuals who visited the following locations on the dates and times below may have been exposed to the measles virus:
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Measles Cases Rise in Ontario: What You Need to Know

Ontario is reporting 89 new measles cases this week, bringing the total provincial count to 661 since the outbreak began in the fall. While this is slightly lower than the 100+ cases reported last week, the numbers remain concerning.
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When most people think of vaccines, they think of childhood. But staying up to date with adult immunizations is just as important — not only for your health but for your community.

Vaccines don’t stop at childhood. If you live in Ottawa or Orleans, it’s time to check in on your immunizations. Vaccines don’t just protect you, they stop the spread of disease. Keeping up to date on your vaccinations as you grow older not only protects you, but protects the most vulnerable in your community.

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On Tuesday, Health Canada authorized Moderna’s latest COVID-19 vaccine, Spikevax, designed to protect against current variants, specifically the KP.2 subvariant of Omicron. This mRNA vaccine replaces the previous version, which was developed to target the XBB.1.5 subvariant and released last year. With fall fast approaching, this reformulated vaccine aims to bolster immunity as respiratory viruses increase during the colder months.

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A recent study found that excess weight affects how the immune system responds to COVID-19,
showing differences between post-infection and post-vaccination immunity. Led by Marcus Tong from
the University of Queensland, the research suggests that being overweight, not just obese, makes SARS-
CoV-2 infections more severe and changes the immune response. (more…)

The U.S. approved the first vaccine for RSV on Wednesday, shots to protect older adults against a respiratory virus that’s most notorious for attacking babies but endangers their grandparents, too.

The Food and Drug Administration decision makes GSK’s shot, called Arexvy, the first of several potential vaccines in the pipeline for RSV to be licensed anywhere.

The move sets the stage for adults 60 and older to get vaccinated this fall — but first, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention must decide if every senior really needs RSV protection or only those considered at high risk from the respiratory syncytial virus. CDC’s advisers will debate that question in June.

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