The following is a news release from Chemung County government:
ELMIRA - The Chemung County Health Department announced today it is extending the deadline for parents to return the consent form to allow their children to receive the H1N1 vaccination in their school. The County Health Department will only receive a very small supply of vaccine this week and is unsure when additional shipments will be made. In an effort to vaccinate as many children as possible when a supply is received, the deadline has been extended to Friday, November 6, 2009."We are aware that some schools were unable to distribute the forms until late last week, and we want to give parents ample opportunity to complete and return the forms, "said Robert Page, Public Health Director. "With the continuing shortage of H1N1 vaccine in local medical offices we are urging parents to get their school age children vaccinated at the free school clinics to be scheduled in the near future."
Only those students who return the consent form will receive the immunization. No walk-ins will be allowed at school clinics to ensure there is enough vaccine for those who have pre-registered by returning the consent form.
Last week, Southern Tier Pediatrics reported such an overwhelming number of their patients calling for the vaccine that their phone lines could not handle the response. They do not have sufficient vaccine for all children in their practices at this time and are focusing their limited supply on the pre-school population.
"We will be contacting those high risk patients, children 2-5 years of age, directly as the H1N1 vaccine becomes available," said Southern Tier Pediatrics Medical Director Dr. Kenneth Sobel. "We have an extremely small supply and are currently unable to begin general vaccination for our patient population. Vaccine availability will be published on our website and clinics will be scheduled for our patients when the supply is sufficient," added Sobel.
Page emphasized that "We understand the anxiety in the public regarding the recent increase in influenza in the community. We are encouraged by recent reports from the Federal government that the vaccine supply is increasing, and our nurses are ready to schedule the school clinics quickly as soon as vaccine arrives in sufficient amounts."
Dr. Sobel would also like to ask parents to seek information on the H1N1 flu on the Southern Tier Pediatrics website or the County website before calling their office. Phone lines continue to be overwhelmed with calls. The majority of questions can be answered by viewing the information online.
Typical symptoms children with the flu like illness are experiencing are fever, cough, sore throat and runny nose. Other common symptoms include; muscle pain, headache, chills, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Treatment for children with these symptoms such as rest, fluids and comfort measures are generally all that is needed. Children with fever can be given Tylenol or Motrin for symptoms of fever, sore throat, and body aches. Children with the flu should not be given aspirin.
With the flu, fevers can be expected to run a minimum of 3 to 5 days, the runny or stuffy nose to last 1 to 2 weeks, and the cough to last 2 to 3 weeks. Most children do not need to be seen by a doctor for these symptoms.
You should seek immediate medical attention for your child if they experience any of the following symptoms:
. Fast breathing or trouble breathing.
. Bluish or gray skin color.
. Not drinking enough fluids, no urine in 12 hours
. Severe or persistent vomiting.
. Not waking up or not interacting.
. Irritability, the child does not want to be held.
. Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough
Up to date information, as well as copies of the forms distributed to students, can be found on the Health Department website www.chemungcountyhealth.org.
