Niagara Health’s Head of Infectious Diseases takes it one shot at a time

How does Niagara Health’s Head of Infectious Diseases help residents protect themselves from COVID-19?

Some days, it’s one person at a time. When one person finished talking to Dr. Karim Ali, it turns out his calm, rational explanation of the benefits of the vaccine won them over.

Messaging him that they were waiting for their shot absolutely made Ali’s day. And his euphoric response indicated he’s done this before.

“Made my day! People have genuine questions and concerns (about the vaccines) and talking to them, walking them through this helps! Maybe not always but most of the time!”

But for every win, there seems to be an outside headache from the misinformed public for the medical community.

Once again, Ivermectin, a drug meant for treating parasites in horses and cows, is still being floated out there as a possible COVID-19 cure.

So much so that Health Canada had to tweet about its use yesterday.

“Canadians should never consume veterinary products because of potential serious risks to health. Ivermectin, an antiparasitic agent, has not been approved for use against COVID-19 and may cause serious health problems,” the agency said in a tweet.

Ali instantly agreed. “Ivermectin is a life saving drug, but not for COVID-19. It is not approved as it has not shown to be beneficial. Please pay attention to this.”

Ali continued, “You know what has shown benefits in large trials and more importantly real life? COVID vaccines! Get your vaccinations complete ASAP.”

The American FDA got into the same argument about ivermectin two weeks ago and posted something even blunter. “You are not a horse. You are not a cow. Seriously, y’all. Stop it.”