What’s your reason for getting vaccinated? That’s the question This Is Our Shot and more than 200 partners across Canada are asking Canadians in a nation-wide effort aimed at rallying together to increase vaccine confidence.
Whether it’s a special someone or something that’s been missing during the pandemic, the new campaign This Is Our Shot to be #TogetherAgain is calling on all Canadians to dedicate their vaccination and help inspire others to get vaccinated so we can avoid a potential fourth wave of COVID-19 and further lockdowns.
“To date, the This Is Our Shot movement has made a major impact in encouraging Canadians to get informed and feel confident about vaccination in a way that’s inclusive and community-based,” says Anju Anand, MD FRCPC, Respirology.
“With the support of our new partners, we’re hoping we can continue to get the message out to more communities across the country so we can end the pandemic, together,” says Guri Pannu, This Is Our Shot, Founder.
While Canada has made significant progress with dose one vaccine coverage, there’s still a long way to go and vaccine hesitancy remains a concern. Research from Boston Consulting Group and 19 to Zero reveals 21 per cent of Canadians (6.9 million) over the age of 16 are hesitant to get vaccinated, with the top-cited concerns being side-effects, vaccine effectiveness against new variants and the speed with which vaccines were developed.
Most of this group includes those who are concerned about the long-term effects of the vaccine, BIPOC communities with a history of health inequity, and Gen Z who are less concerned with catching COVID-19.
“As the COVID-19 vaccine rollout continues, connecting people with credible sources of information from health authorities to build trust and confidence is critical,” said Garrick Tiplady, Managing Director of Facebook Canada. “This Is Our Shot to be #TogetherAgain is a key part of this work, and the cross-industry collaboration enabled through this movement is essential.
This Is Our Shot to be #TogetherAgain is backed by grassroots organizations, Canadian businesses, associations, healthcare professionals, community leaders and influencers. The goal is to ensure specific hesitant and hotspot communities have the right facts and information to replace vaccine hesitancy with confidence.
“We need to embrace the Canadian spirit of togetherness and do our part to reach that final goal, so we can be one step closer to economic recovery and getting Canadians safely back together again,” says Kyle Norrington, President of Labatt Breweries of Canada.
Canadians are encouraged to participate in the This Is Our Shot to be #TogetherAgain challenge by:
- Getting the vaccine when it’s your turn.
- Buying a This Is Our Shot to be #TogetherAgain t-shirt with all proceeds benefitting Kids Help Phone.
- Dedicating your vaccine to someone (or something) you care about.
- Sharing your dedication and tagging your friends and family to join the movement using #ThisIsOurShotCA and #TogetherAgain.
- Following @ThisIsOurShotCA on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok.
Finding vaccination information in one convenient place has been challenging during the pandemic. The campaign website ThisIsOurShot.ca addresses this by providing easy-to-understand vaccine FAQs, booking information and resources in more than 30 languages. A series of community townhalls will be held regularly through a variety of platforms to provide Canadians with the ability to get their questions answered by medical professionals, influencers and community leaders.
Since This Is Our Shot launched its campaign in April, more than $100,000 has been raised for Kids Help Phone through t-shirt sales.
