Six Broward Schools Administer H1N1 Shots, Delay For Other Schools

Posted by OurTownNews November 8, 2009, 9:24 PM
2 Comments 

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By Nicol Jenkins
Editor

Six Broward County schools have administered the H1N1 shots; however the rest of the county schools will have to wait.

“Our plan is to do vaccines in all Broward County schools, but it may take longer than anticipated because vaccine shipments are running short. There is a delay in manufacturing,” said Candy Sims, spokesperson for the Broward County Health Department.

The six schools include: Coconut Creek High School, Wilton Manors Elementary, Westpine Middle, Tamarac Elementary, Dania Elementary, and Pembroke Pines Elementary.

Students at those schools were allowed to opt in or out of getting the H1N1 shot. Those who wanted the shot had to sign a consent form. The number of students who decided to get the shot varied from school to school and ranged from intranasal, a single and multi-dose shot. At Westpine Middle, 550 out of 1,500 students signed forms, according to Marsy Smith, spokesperson for Broward County Public Schools.

“The School District is offering the shots to keep our children safe and to work in cooperation with the Broward County Health Department,” said Smith.

Dates for administering shots to the remaining schools “have not been finalized,” according to Smith.

However, so far the response for receiving the shots has been mixed.

“We gave 961 vaccinations to students and school staff. A third of consent forms came back,” said Sims.

At Coconut Creek High School, over 400 out of 2,060 students signed consent forms to get the shot, according to principal David Jones.

“Parents are making individual decisions for their kids. Parents haven’t expressed specific concerns,” said Jones, adding, “And we haven’t seen any increases in absenteeism. We have good attendance at this school.”

Coral Springs and Parkland schools have not administered the shots as of yet.

Jessica Gomez, a senior at Coral Springs High School, says she’s not taking the shot. Gomez’s doctor thinks she may have already contracted the H1N1 virus and she had to miss school for seven days.

“I wouldn’t take this shot. I don’t have enough background information to say if it’s sufficient or not, or if it has bad side effects,” said the 17-year-old.

Countywide, there "have not been any outbreaks in schools, or mass or unusual absences reported,” said Sims.

However, Sims adds, “The virus is still mild, but we still have H1N1 in our community.”

In addition to the shots, Broward County school officials are continuing to stress preventive measures, including hand washing and staying home when feeling ill.

“We are stressing that students stay home if they feel sick and wash their hands,” said Sims.

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