Dr. Sumon Chakrabarti empathizes with other Canadians who have reported common side effects after receiving their COVID-19 vaccines. After his second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, he had a low-grade fever and joint pain.

But Chakrabarti, an infectious diseases physician at Trillium Health Partners in Mississauga, Ont., said the end result of protection against COVID-19 was worth the discomfort.

“I don’t want to trivialize the way people feel. I know it’s unpleasant,” he said. “Just remember that these symptoms go away relatively quickly and in