MORAVIA - A steady flow of Moravia school children, some with smiles on their faces and some with tears, moved through the district's H1N1 flu clinic Thursday.
Chet Susslin / The Citizen
Karl Knutson comforts his step-granddaughter Maddy Knutson, 8, as she waits her turn while his son Brady, 8, gets the H1N1 flu vaccine from Mary Woodman at a clinic run by Cayuga County Department of Health and Human Services at Moravia High School on Thursday afternoon.
Karl Knutson comforts his step-granddaughter Maddy Knutson, 8, as she waits her turn while his son Brady, 8, gets the H1N1 flu vaccine from Mary Woodman at a clinic run by Cayuga County Department of Health and Human Services at Moravia High School on Thursday afternoon.
By 8 p.m., 325 students were estimated to have been vaccinated. The first of the school-based clinics in the county, it will be followed by clinics in the other school districts, pending an ample supply of H1N1 vaccine, the Cayuga County Department of Health and Human Services said.
Students and their parents were asked to do a quick screening and take a consent form at the entrance of the high school cafeteria. From there, families had a chance to sit down at tables, read through the consent form, read handouts on H1N1 and ask questions of red-aproned health department staff.
After signing their consent forms, families were ushered into a line where their consent forms were double checked. A third check of consent forms occurred when children were finally pointed to one of six chairs in the school's board of education room. While sitting in these chairs, students received either the injection form of the vaccine or the nasal “flu mist.”
“It's not crazy busy,” said Kathleen Cuddy, deputy director of health services at the department of health and human services. “There's a steady flow. People don't appear to be waiting.”
After students had their vaccines, they had to sit down and wait for 10 minutes to ensure there were no unexpected reactions.
Joy Vivenzio, of Moravia, and her two sons, 8-year-old Steven and 11-year-old James, came to the clinic.
“We don't want (the boys) getting the flu,” said Vivenzio. “Some people say (the vaccine) hasn't been tested enough, but I was willing to take the risk, as opposed to having them come down with something that serious.”
Gail Morse and her children, 11-year-old Samantha Gallasch and 13-year-old Robert Gallasch, said they only waited about 10 minutes at the most to get the children's vaccines.
“My kids are very healthy,” Morse said. “But they made (getting the vaccine) so convenient. If the kids have ‘herd immunity' to prevent the spread, I'm more than willing to (bring them).”
Ayesha Atkinson brought her daughter Taquay, 4, to the clinic to get the nasal spray form of the vaccine. Atkinson said she's heard stories of people dying from H1N1 and wanted to protect her daughter.
Cuddy said there was enough vaccine for Moravia's clinic and enough for Monday's two clinics, in the Cato-Meridian school district and Auburn elementary schools. She said if there was any left over vaccine from Thursday's clinic in Moravia, it would be used when needed at future clinics. She also said the county is receiving more vaccine for the clinics scheduled after Monday. Clinics will be rescheduled if need be, she said.
During the clinic, students who were uncomfortable with the injection were able to receive the nasal spray. Students with allergies, asthma or other certain health problems could not receive the nasal spray, so they had to get the shot.
The nasal spray consists of a “weakened live virus,” and is recommended for people ages 2 through 49 who do not have certain chronic diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes or asthma, said Lisa Donalds, a public health nurse. She said the weakened live virus in the nasal spray is not harmful to people in good health. The injection is appropriate for anyone without an allergy.
Thursday's clinic and the other school-based clinics are not open to the public. At this time, only students in Cayuga's school districts and staff members who fall into “high-risk” categories will be able to get the vaccine from these clinics. Persons at “high risk” for developing “severe complications due to H1N1 flu” are those who are pregnant; who live with or care for children younger than six months of age; who are emergency medical services personnel; and persons between the ages of six months to 24 years.
For more information about H1N1, or any public health concerns, visit the Cayuga County Health and Human Services Web site at http://co.cayuga.ny.us/hhs/doh/index.htm or call the flu hotline at 253-1157.
Staff writer Kelly Voll can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 239 or kelly.voll@lee.net
Students and their parents were asked to do a quick screening and take a consent form at the entrance of the high school cafeteria. From there, families had a chance to sit down at tables, read through the consent form, read handouts on H1N1 and ask questions of red-aproned health department staff.
After signing their consent forms, families were ushered into a line where their consent forms were double checked. A third check of consent forms occurred when children were finally pointed to one of six chairs in the school's board of education room. While sitting in these chairs, students received either the injection form of the vaccine or the nasal “flu mist.”
“It's not crazy busy,” said Kathleen Cuddy, deputy director of health services at the department of health and human services. “There's a steady flow. People don't appear to be waiting.”
After students had their vaccines, they had to sit down and wait for 10 minutes to ensure there were no unexpected reactions.
Joy Vivenzio, of Moravia, and her two sons, 8-year-old Steven and 11-year-old James, came to the clinic.
“We don't want (the boys) getting the flu,” said Vivenzio. “Some people say (the vaccine) hasn't been tested enough, but I was willing to take the risk, as opposed to having them come down with something that serious.”
Gail Morse and her children, 11-year-old Samantha Gallasch and 13-year-old Robert Gallasch, said they only waited about 10 minutes at the most to get the children's vaccines.
“My kids are very healthy,” Morse said. “But they made (getting the vaccine) so convenient. If the kids have ‘herd immunity' to prevent the spread, I'm more than willing to (bring them).”
Ayesha Atkinson brought her daughter Taquay, 4, to the clinic to get the nasal spray form of the vaccine. Atkinson said she's heard stories of people dying from H1N1 and wanted to protect her daughter.
Cuddy said there was enough vaccine for Moravia's clinic and enough for Monday's two clinics, in the Cato-Meridian school district and Auburn elementary schools. She said if there was any left over vaccine from Thursday's clinic in Moravia, it would be used when needed at future clinics. She also said the county is receiving more vaccine for the clinics scheduled after Monday. Clinics will be rescheduled if need be, she said.
During the clinic, students who were uncomfortable with the injection were able to receive the nasal spray. Students with allergies, asthma or other certain health problems could not receive the nasal spray, so they had to get the shot.
The nasal spray consists of a “weakened live virus,” and is recommended for people ages 2 through 49 who do not have certain chronic diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes or asthma, said Lisa Donalds, a public health nurse. She said the weakened live virus in the nasal spray is not harmful to people in good health. The injection is appropriate for anyone without an allergy.
Thursday's clinic and the other school-based clinics are not open to the public. At this time, only students in Cayuga's school districts and staff members who fall into “high-risk” categories will be able to get the vaccine from these clinics. Persons at “high risk” for developing “severe complications due to H1N1 flu” are those who are pregnant; who live with or care for children younger than six months of age; who are emergency medical services personnel; and persons between the ages of six months to 24 years.
For more information about H1N1, or any public health concerns, visit the Cayuga County Health and Human Services Web site at http://co.cayuga.ny.us/hhs/doh/index.htm or call the flu hotline at 253-1157.
Staff writer Kelly Voll can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 239 or kelly.voll@lee.net
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