June 22, 2005

PHD to Hold Saturday Immunization Clinics in St. Maries

Clinics to offer school immunizations and others

ST. MARIES, Idaho - Panhandle Health District will hold an immunization clinic in St. Maries on two Saturdays this summer to give parents a chance to make sure their children's immunizations are up to date before school starts.

Clinics will be held 8 a.m.-noon on July 23 and on August 13. Please call 245-4556 for an appointment.

Children who are beginning preschool or kindergarten in the fall will need an additional series of immunizations prior to entering school.

Effective in the 2005-06 school year, all children entering preschool or kindergarten must have five doses of DTaP (diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis) and two doses of MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccination. Previously, youngsters were required to have four doses of DTaP and one dose of MMR. Children also must have three polio and three hepatitis B vaccinations prior to entering school.

Parents are urged to check with their children's doctor to make sure immunizations are up-to-date. Area schools require proof of immunization at registration time.

Immunizations also will be available for adults and adolescents, including a new meningococcal vaccine that targets meningococcal disease, a potentially serious condition caused by bacteria that infect the bloodstream and the linings of the brain and spinal cord.

The new vaccine was licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration earlier this year for use in people 11-55 years of age.