OCTOBER 15, 2009 ISSUE
Medical Personnel Await H1N1 Vaccines
Nasal Doses Available at Health Department
H1N1 vaccines have yet to arrive in the High Country, but for those not in priority groups, H1N1 nasal doses are available at the Appalachian District Health Department, said Judy Ford, infection control practitioner at Appalachian Regional Healthcare System.
The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) recommends that the following priority groups be vaccinated for H1N1 first: pregnant women, people who live with or care for children younger than six months, healthcare and emergency medical services personnel, people between six months and 24 years old and adults ages 25 to 64 with chronic health disorders or compromised immune systems.
H1N1 nasal doses, however, are only recommended for people ages 2 to 49 who have no underlying health issues, Ford said, adding that pregnant women, children with asthma or chronic health conditions or adults with chronic health conditions are discouraged from receiving the nasal doses.
The government distributed a number of H1N1 nasal doses to each state, and North Carolina then distributed its allotment of 52,000 doses to the 86 county health departments, Ford said.
“Injections have not been released yet,” Ford said.
Medical personnel do not know when they will receive the H1N1 vaccines that are recommended for priority groups or how many they will receive, she added.
“From my understanding, we’re on a downswing for this round of H1N1,” Ford said, adding that she has not heard of any recent H1N1 or seasonal flu hospitalizations.
“It’s really too early for seasonal flu,” she said. “We normally don’t get [cases of] seasonal flu until January or February.”
For more information, click to www.flu.nc.gov or www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu or call the N.C. CARE-LINE at 1-800-662-7030 (TTY 1-877-452-2514).
To learn more about the virus, click to www.flu.gov or talk to your doctor.
For more information on local updates, click to www.apprhs.org or www.apphealth.com.
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