H1N1 vaccine clinics under way
A majority of the 200 spray and 1,600 injectable doses arrived Friday, clinic organizer Marcye Gray said, but the district is waiting for the rest of the order. She told the school board Monday night that officials did not feel confident enough that the remaining vaccine would arrive in time and therefore made the decision to postpone.
Flu clinics were set up for the first week of November starting with the Hebron Station and Guy E. Rowe Elementary schools on Monday. Other clinics are at: Agnes Gray and Paris elementary schools, Nov. 4; Oxford and Otisfield elementary schools and Oxford Hills Middle School in Paris, Nov. 5; Harrison and Waterford elementary schools and the Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School in Paris, Nov. 6.
"We're feeling good about this," Gray told directors.
Gray said the number of parents who gave their students permission to get the H1N1 vaccine is a "little smaller" than those who signed up for the seasonal flu vaccine.
In September, 1,400 students or 30 percent of the study body districtwide, received the seasonal flu vaccine. A total of 200 students had to receive a second dose because they were under the age of 9 and had not had the seasonal flu before, Gray said.
This week's H1N1 clinic is for students only.
Gray said Oxford Hills School District has seen a "spotty" outbreak from the flu in various schools.
Superintendent Mark Eastman said the decision to close the schools due to illness will be based on operations and not a public health issue. There will be no "magic number," of illnesses that forces the school to close but rather the decision will be made on whether it makes sense to keep school open and buses running due to the number of students and staff available, he said.
Schools are mandated to report to the state absenteeism of more than 15 percent, but Eastman said the state has informed him and other school officials that the threshold might be higher than 15 percent with the H1N1 flu.
ldixon@sunjournal.com
