Swine flu clinics attract thousands at Oklahoma City schools
BY AARON CRESPO
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Published: October 25, 2009
Thousands of people waited for hours outside two Oklahoma City high schools while the county health department gave out swine flu vaccinations on Saturday.
The clinics were held at U.S. Grant High School and Southeast High School. About 2,000 doses of vaccine were available at each location for children and pregnant women, said H.R. Holman, spokesman for the Oklahoma City-County Health Department. Swine flu, also known as H1N1, has killed 13 Oklahomans. Hundreds of others have been hospitalized. President Barack Obama signed a declaration Friday calling the virus a national emergency. Health authorities say more than 1,000 people, including nearly 100 children, have died from the disease. About 11 million doses of the vaccine have been sent to health departments, doctor’s offices and other providers, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. Shea Berg arrived at 6:45 a.m. with her 3-year-old son, Jacob, and her husband. She said there were already about 25 people ahead of her in the morning and the line got a lot longer later on. "The line just got crazy after 7,” Berg said. "He (Jacob) has asthma, and so they said children with underlying problems needed it so we came in. He needs one in a month, so we’ll be back.” Children at the clinic could get either the nasal vaccine or injection. The vaccinations were limited to children and pregnant women because they are at a higher risk for complications, said Pamela Rollins, the county health department’s assistant director for community services. Rollins said the vaccine is safe. "It is very safe, it is produced just the same as any seasonal flu vaccine and we have many years’ experience with that,” Rollins said. "It took us about six months to produce and do the clinical trials.” Seasonal flu vaccines were not available at the clinic. Rollins said about 12,000 doses of seasonal flu vaccine have been delivered to the county health department so far this year, but most goes to the private sector. Rollins said officials want everyone to get a seasonal flu vaccination and H1N1 vaccinations will be made available as more doses are produced. Holman said more than 3,500 people were vaccinated at the schools. No one was turned away. The average wait was four to five hours, Holman said. More clinics will be scheduled as supplies come in. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention says an average of about 36,000 people die each year from seasonal flu.
Related Topics:
Culture and Lifestyle, Health and Fitness, Medicine, Contagious and Infectious Diseases, Pregnancy and Childbirth, Vaccines, Medical Treatments and Procedures, Family, Influenza, Swine Flu
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