Sun Country Health Region has an 85% coverage of children vaccinated.

This is good coverage, according to Dr Lanre Medu, Medical Health Officer, Sun Country Health Region.

"Typically the routine immunizations calendar we have, we follow in the province has persons able to start immunizations at two months of age," said Medu who went on to explain how children will receive vaccinations against Retrovirus, Dypheria, Tetanus, Whooping cough, Polio and Meningococcal disease.

By the time a child is in grade 8, they may have received up to 20 vaccination injections.

"It is advised that we keep vaccination rates as high as possible," said Dr. Medu due to the reality that unvaccinated people can bring diseases back from travelling to other countries as well as diseases already present in this country.

Some Weyburn residents have shared concerns about the safety of vaccinations.

"Vaccines are not without risks, that is one thing, however, the risk of not vaccinating far outweighs the risk that is due to vaccinations," said Medu, who went on to say that the side effects of vaccinations may be a fever, redness and pain around the injection site.

There have been reports of vaccinations being linked to causing autism.

"That has since been debunked."

"There were quite a number of inherent flaws in the study," explained Medu.

"Vaccines are one of the safer medical interventions, even far above far and above drugs. The Vaccine system has a very rigorous safety system."

"Vaccines have been the victims of their own successes."

Medu explained how vaccinations have reduced diseases to the point where nobody hears about Dypheria anymore which used to be "rampant in Canada."

Moose Jaw had an outbreak of whooping cough earlier in September. 

As October begins on Sunday and Flu season is almost here, Dr Medu and Sun Country Health Region are encouraging people to get the Flu vaccine. More information about the flu vaccine including locations and dates can be found here.