Join Scott White, editor-in-chief of The Conversation Canada, as he hosts a panel with four McMaster academics who have been drawing on their research to provide media commentary and information throughout the pandemic.

This online talk will discuss vaccine confidence and look at vaccine hesitancy, explore where it comes from and discuss ways to address it during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

This event comes as a new variant of COVID-19 is raising questions about the efficacy of the current vaccines, the need for boosters and the importance of global vaccine equity. Omicron has been confirmed in places around the globe, including southern Africa, Europe, and North America. Experts say variants will continue to pose a global threat if large parts of the world remain unvaccinated.

Panelists:
Dr. Dawn Bowdish is a professor in the Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine and a Canada Research Chair in Aging and Immunity & the Executive Director of the Firestone Institute of Respiratory Health. Her lab studies how the microbiota and immune system change with age and how these changes impact healthy/unhealthy aging and increase susceptibility to pneumonia and COVID-19.

Dr. Zain Chagla is an associate professor of medicine and infectious disease specialist. He is a Consultant Physician at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Hamilton Health Sciences.

Dr. Manali Mukherjee is an assistant professor in the Division of Respirology and Department of Medicine. She is the lead researcher of a team of McMaster scientists studying long-term illnesses suffered by some patients after recovering from COVID-19.

Dr. Clifton van der Linden is an assistant professor of political science and and director of the Digital Society Lab at McMaster. He is actively engaged in the application of new, technologically enabled methods to the study of political behaviour and public opinion.