Dr. Theresa Tam gets booster at Ottawa family doc's 'Jabapalooza'

Canada's top doctor has had her booster shot, thanks to a local Ottawa doctor's vaccine clinic.

Dr. Nili Kaplan-Myrth, a local family physician, has been holding regular "Jabapalooza" clinics since the spring of 2021. On Sunday, she had 1,000 spots booked for a clinic at Glebe Collegiate Institute and among those who stopped by was Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada's chief public health officer.

"Our daughter came up to me and said, 'Mum, I think (Dr. Tam) is here for her booster at Jabapalooza.' And indeed she is!" Dr. Kaplan-Myrth tweeted Sunday. "A steady stream of Ottawans, an amazing team of volunteers, and our MPP (Joel Harden) helping again with the line outside (Glebe Collegiate). What a day!"

Sunday's Jabapalooza clinic was an effort to help get boosters to health-care workers, child-care providers and other essential workers, with room for walk-ins.

A clinic on Monday is focused on vaccinating children 5-11 years old.

Dr. Kaplan-Myrth said another member of the medical team had administered the booster to Dr. Tam, and she wasn't even aware the CPHO was in the building until her daughter pointed it out.

"So cool that our daughter recognized her - she’s a rock star to our family," she tweeted.

In a statement, Dr. Tam said, “I am now boosted against COVID-19, along with a growing number of Canadians. I’m grateful for the leadership of healthcare workers and volunteers in endeavours like the clinic I attended across the country, helping to keep our communities healthy and safe.”

Dr. Tam has been the public face of the health-care efforts to combat COVID-19 in Canada, giving regular federal briefings. In a year-end interview with CTV News, she said that every pandemic comes to an end, and while it's too soon to say how this one will end, she urged Canadians to get vaccinated if they haven't already.

“This is what I would call an ultramarathon—it’s not even a marathon anymore. The whole system is taxed… but people are still trying their hardest to provide vaccines and other supports for the population,” she said.

“Vaccinators are not that easy to come by either. They're tired. And so, I think if people can line up in an orderly fashion, we'll get everybody boosted in a relatively short period of time.”