Panhandle Health District

                                                             8500 N. Atlas Road         Hayden, Idaho  83835

www.phd1.idaho.gov

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                      Date:     January 4, 2010                         

Contact:                                                                             Released by: Jeanne Bock, Director                     

Cynthia Taggart

Public Information Officer

(208) 415-5108

(208) 818-7288 (cell)

Weekend Clinics Offer Free H1N1 Vaccinations

              For people who still need protection from the H1N1 influenza virus this season, Panhandle Health District will offer free vaccinations starting at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 16, in each of the five northern counties.

              H1N1 may return as the seasonal flu this winter, leaving people unprotected if they have only a seasonal flu vaccination. H1N1 and seasonal flu are similar except that they cause complications for different groups of people. H1N1 also targets the under-25 age group in the greatest numbers while seasonal flu hits the youngest and oldest generations the hardest.

              Children younger than 10 need two doses of the H1N1 vaccine at least 24 days apart. Children who were vaccinated on or before Dec. 23 may get their second vaccination at the Jan. 16 clinics.

              Vaccination is the most effective means of slowing the spread of H1N1. Children younger than 6 months old can’t have the vaccination, so vaccination of everyone around them is their only protection from the virus. H1N1 infects the oldest population the least, but people in that age group who do catch the virus are at great risk of complications.

              Other groups that have high levels of complications with H1N1 are pregnant women and people of any age with chronic health problems, such as diabetes or asthma. Vaccination is important for everyone older than 6 months to reduce the chance the virus may spread to more vulnerable people.

              The H1N1 vaccination is free. Consent forms for the vaccination are on the PHD website—www.phd1.idaho.gov. Everyone needs to fill out a consent form. They’ll also be available at each site. Printing them off the website and bringing them to the clinic filled out will enable people to move through the vaccination process quicker.

              H1N1 vaccination clinics will be offered Jan. 16 on a walk-in basis at:

• PHD Hayden, 8500 N. Atlas Rd., from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• PHD Bonners Ferry, 7402 Caribou, from 10 a.m. to noon
• PHD Sandpoint, 1020 Michigan, from 10 a.m. to noon
• PHD St. Maries, 137 N. 8th, from 10 a.m. to noon
• PHD Kellogg, 114 Riverside, from 10 a.m. to noon.

            PHD will continue to offer free weekday H1N1 vaccinations in its offices. Some services are by appointment only and some are on a walk-in basis. Check the PHD website at www.phd1.idaho.gov for the most updated clinic schedule.