Swine flu shots remain available

Despite the limited quantities of H1N1 vaccine for the Shoals, area residents found little wait time Wednesday to receive their dose of antibodies against this particular strain of the influenza virus.

Alabama received 55,000 doses of the vaccine, which it distributed to each county based on population. In Lauderdale, there were 1,570 doses, while there were 945 in Colbert and 630 in Franklin.

Clinics at area health departments Wednesday were designed to get the vaccine to those in high-risk groups, including pregnant women, children 6 months through 4 years old, children and adolescents 5 through 18 years old with underlying medical conditions, health care workers and parents, caregivers and siblings of children less than 6 months old.

Dr. Karen Landers, area health officer, said she had anticipated running out of the vaccine Wednesday, but less than half of the available doses were administered.

"At this point, we still have vaccines for all of our counties," she said.

"Business did pick up in the afternoon when school let out, and (today) we will plan how to administer the remainder of that vaccine with clinics in the future."

Landers' area includes Colbert, Franklin, Lauderdale, Marion, Walker and Winston counties.

Chad Gamble, of Tuscumbia, and his daughter, Lillian, 4, spent less than an hour going through the process of receiving the FluMist vaccine, which is the form inhaled through the nose. It is only available for those who do not have underlying medical conditions or who are younger than 50.

"It's a scary thing with the possibility of a pandemic, especially with all the children who have died from it," he said. "It's better to go ahead and get it because the alternative would be so much worse."

The virus has claimed the lives of 22 Alabamians, one of whom was younger than 18, according to the state Department of Public Health. Nationwide, of the more than 1,000 swine flu-related deaths, two-thirds have been children.

Once this shipment of vaccines is depleted, state Health Officer Dr. Don Williamson said it would be a month to six weeks before more will be available to those outside the high-risk groups, and it will be at that point schools will offer clinics to inoculate greater numbers of the population.

Traditionally, the seasonal flu lasts from late October to early April, but the H1N1 strain of the virus has shown an ability to spread throughout the year. In Alabama, confirmed cases of the virus seem to be dropping, just in time for the seasonal flu to pick up, Williamson said.

"A couple of weeks ago, 12.3 percent of all physician office visits were flu-like illness, but last week, it was down to 10 percent," he said. "In the schools, more than 50 percent of all Alabama schools have less than 5 percent absenteeism, which is a reversal from where we were six weeks ago. This means we are now in a stable portion of the outbreak and maybe on the downside."

He cautioned that a third wave of the virus could erupt in the coming months, as was the case with the influenza outbreaks of 1918, 1957 and 1968.

In the meantime, Landers said hand hygiene will become especially important as the weather turns cooler and people spend more time indoors or in crowds throughout the holiday season.

"Good hand hygiene can go a long way toward combatting not just these kinds of illnesses but also gastrointestinal illnesses as well," she said. "We continue to stress covering a cough and using good cough etiquette, hand washing or using hand sanitizer, and staying home when you're sick. These are basic health measures we continue to reinforce."

Michelle Rupe Eubanks can be reached at 740-5745 or michelle.eubanks@TimesDaily.com.