Sickle Cell Disease & COVID-19 Vaccination
The chief of infectious diseases at the SickKids hospital, Dr. Upton Allen, gives an in-depth overview of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines.
The chief of infectious diseases at the SickKids hospital, Dr. Upton Allen, gives an in-depth overview of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines.
Dr. Jacob Pendergrast presented Blood Transfusions as a life-saving therapy for some individuals with sickle cell disease and discussed the impact of COVID-19 on this treatment.
Health equity is about providing people with an equal chance of attaining their fullest health potential, including addressing the social determinants of health such as racism and poverty1.
Sickle Cell Disease is the most common genetically inherited disease in Canada. It is a severe, congenital disorder of the red blood cells, affecting individuals from diverse ethnic backgrounds – Mediterranean, African, Caribbean, Middle East, South America, and South Asia. More than 6000 Canadians and 3500 Ontarians2 are affected, and that number is increasing annually in large part due to migration from countries with high disease prevalence, as well as natural increase within Canada from parents who carry sickle cell disease genetic traits.
Individuals living with sickle cell disease experience chronic fatigue and episodic pain crises. Without proper, ongoing care, these individuals experience major health complications including organ failure, even at a young age. They also have compromised immune systems and are highly susceptible to infection. As such, they are at a higher risk of contracting dangerous communicable illnesses, such as COVID-19, and experiencing poorer outcomes compared to their peers who do not have sickle cell disease.
In Ontario and across the country, sickle cell disease predominantly affects individuals who identify as Black. The persistent health disparities experienced by racialized communities creates significant barriers to health equity for Ontario’s Black community, particularly those individuals with sickle cell disease who depend substantially on access to Ontario’s health and social services.
Improving health outcomes for Ontario residents living with sickle cell disease will not only benefit the patients and their families by decreasing severe disease complications, and the need for hospitalization, but it will also improve their quality of life. It will increase their opportunities to contribute productively to society, while significantly decreasing the burden of costly in-patient care.
Ontarians with sickle cell disease continue to die from largely preventable complications of sickle cell disease. Under the circumstances, it is especially troubling to know that you, your child or family member with sickle cell disease may:
Mismanagement of sickle cell disease does not only impact the individuals and their families, but the healthcare system as a whole.
Multiple studies have shown that patients with sickle cell disease rely heavily on acute care medical services such as emergency room visits and inpatient hospitalization3-11. Inpatient hospitalizations are particularly expensive.
According to Mrs. Lanre Tunji-Ajayi, the president/CEO of the Sickle Cell Awareness Group of Ontario, one week of acute care (non-ICU) admission of an individual with sickle cell disease in an Ontario hospital costs the provincial government an average of $20,000 and many individuals with sickle cell disease are admitted at an average of 6-12 times annually.
The length of hospitalization may range from one to several weeks of admission/year. Using conservative figures, non-ICU admission 6 times/year, lasting one week per admission, may cost upwards of $120,000 per patient/year and upwards of $9 million for a patient’s lifetime; and this figure excludes the societal costs of unemployment and decreased work productivity. As the number of patients with sickle cell disease in Ontario continues to grow, the associated burden on the medical system is becoming considerable.
However, the good news is that there is an enormous opportunity to decrease the health care costs of patients with sickle cell disease while simultaneously improving clinical outcomes. Shifting the care of patients with sickle cell disease from an inpatient to outpatient setting, primarily through the provision of basic preventative health maintenance and the use of hydroxyurea, can reduce total healthcare costs by 20%.12
Given the provincial government’s responsibility in ensuring equitable access to health by all of its citizens, we implore the Ministry of Health and the newly created Ontario Health to work with the Sickle Cell Awareness Group of Ontario (SCAGO) in ensuring that, (similar to Hemophilia Ontario), individuals with sickle cell disease receive appropriate and timely intervention that:
TORONTO — The Sickle Cell Awareness Group of Ontario (SCAGO) has become a member of the Sickle Cell Disease Coalition (SCDC), an international organization uniting public health, research, and provider organizations, patient groups, faith-based organizations, federal agencies, industry representatives, and foundations with an interest in Sickle Cell Disease (SCD).
SCAGO and the SCDC have a shared mission in the fight against SCD, an inherited red blood cell disorder that affects millions of people globally.
SCAGO supports people living with SCD and their families in Ontario, Canada, through research, advocacy, and education, and has recently opened its virtual education program to the global SCD community while the SCDC gives its members access to timely SCD research, resources, and partnership opportunities as well as a network of key stakeholders interested in SCD to engage in joint action.
“At the Sickle Cell Awareness Group of Ontario, we are doing our part to support the global SCD community and as such, we are excited to join forces with the SCDC in the continued global battle against this debilitating disease,” said Mrs. Lanre Tunji-Ajayi, SCAGO’s President and CEO
Official SCDC representatives stated, “The Sickle Cell Disease Coalition is pleased to welcome the Sickle Cell Awareness Group of Ontario (SCAGO). We look forward to engaging SCAGO in the Coalition’s efforts to unite the global sickle cell community and conquer sickle cell disease. Welcome, SCAGO!”