Grand Traverse County Schedules H1N1 Vaccine Clinic

By Linda Stephan

Young children, caregivers and pregnant women will be vaccinated against the H1N1 flu this Sunday at the Grand Traverse Mall. County health officials received a shipment of vaccine for the swine flu today.

Several Northern Michigan schools closed down for part of this week because of the flu. Director of the Grand Traverse County Health Department Fred Keeslar says H1N1 is likely spreading quickly in the schools because it's a strain young people have no immunity against.

"Folks that are older, like myself, have probably been exposed to other variants of this flu earlier in life, or in vaccinations," he says.

Keeslar says all influenza's are hard on certain populations - in this case, pregnant women, very young children and youth with other health conditions that can compromise immunity.

Only those at high risk, and their caregivers, can be immunized Sunday, because of to the limited supply.

Details:

Date: Sunday, October 25, 2009

Time: 10:00 am to 4:00 pm

Location: Grand Traverse Mall community room (at customer service in the food court).

Due to a limited supply of the vaccine, it will be given only to the following target groups of Grand Traverse County Residents:

1. Caregivers and household contacts of children less than 6 months of age.
2. All children 6 months to 4 years of age.
3. Children age 5 to 18 with chronic health conditions associated with higher risk of complications from influenza. (These include: cancer, blood disorders (including sickle cell disease), chronic lung disease (such as asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), diabetes, heart disease, kidney disorders, liver disorders, neurological disorders (such as epilepsy, cerebral palsy, brain or spinal cord injuries, moderate to profound intellectual disability (mental retardation) or developmental delay), Neuromuscular disorders (such as muscular dystrophy and multiple sclerosis), and weakened immune systems (such as people with HIV or AIDS or who are on medication that weaken the immune system).
4. Pregnant women.

Links:

Grand Traverse County Health Department

U.S. Centers for Disease Control

www.Flu.gov