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Published Thursday, December 03, 2009 in Local

Health Department fully stocked with vaccine

By Jeff Bishop

The Newnan Times-Herald

The Coweta County Health Department is "fully stocked" with all versions of the H1N1 vaccine for so-called swine flu, but anyone seeking the shot is still urged to make an appointment to avoid lengthy waits and wasted trips.

"We now have a full stock of H1N1 flu vaccine," and a limited supply of seasonal flu vaccine, a recorded message on the health department phone line states.

Nursing Director Alice Jackson confirmed this week's shipment of vaccine ensures the health department is "stocked with H1N1 vaccine for all age groups."

She said they are "still concentrating on the five high-priority groups," however.

The priority groups identified as most at risk by the CDC include pregnant women; children and young adults from 6 months to 24 years of age; people age 25 to 64 years with chronic conditions such as asthma, diabetes, any type of chronic respiratory conditions, heart disease and immuno- suppressive disorders; people who live with or care for children 6 months of age or younger; and health care and emergency medical services personnel with direct patient contact.

"Those are the groups we'll be focusing on," said Jackson.

She said calling for an appointment ahead of time will help "make for a quicker appointment and a faster turnaround" for anyone seeking the vaccine, she said. The health department is at 137 Jackson St. just north of downtown Newnan and may be reached at 770-254-7400.

"We will be limited with the number of walk-ins we can accommodate at any one time, especially when it comes to parking. We're still dealing with all of those same issues," she said.

Hayla Hall of District 4 Public Health said area health departments, including Coweta, received "a mixture of all forms available, including mist, injectable and preservative-free."

"We got probably a couple of thousand doses," said Jackson. "So maybe that will see us through the end of the year. And hopefully children who need that second dose should be able to come back and get it."

Hall said that "there have been no more deaths that I'm aware" from H1N1 in Coweta County.

"Recommendations have not changed, and the same priority groups are being vaccinated now as before," said Hall. "I don't think recommendations will change for the holidays.

"H1N1 is not as widespread as it was several weeks ago," she said. "It is on the decline, but still around."

In a reversal of the situation the country faced just weeks ago, a declining number of flu cases and an increasing supply of vaccine against the "novel influenza A H1N1 virus" present a "window of opportunity" to prevent the spread of infection, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told Associated Press Tuesday.

The number of states that had widespread flu activity decreased from 43 to 32 for the week ending Nov. 21, according to the latest report available. Both Georgia and South Carolina are now at a regional level of activity, the next lowest level.

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