Politics & Government

Health Department Prepared for H1N1 Clinic

Avallone said the department has everything it needs for tonight.

Health Officer Megan Avallone said her agency is prepared for whatever could happen at Tuesday night's H1N1 clinic at Westfield High School.

She said the department has stocked up on needles to out the doses and other materials needed to run the clinic.Volunteers have been arranged to assist with registering patients and nurses have been hired to administer the vaccine. She has also talked with the police department in order to provide adequate security in the event it is needed.

On Sunday a H1N1 clinic run by the Scotch Plains Health Department actually ran out of needles to inject the shots. Scotch Plains Health Officer Rick Proctor had to run to the local CVS to purchase pediatric syringes in order to finish the clinic. Proctor, also a county freeholder, has been running to buy more syringes for the other clinics his regional department, based in Rahway, is running in other towns this week.

Find out what's happening in Westfieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Avallone stressed that Westfield is prepared for whatever might come and she has all the supplies she needs. She is encouraging residents to come early for the clinic which will start at 5 p.m. at the high school and run for three hours. She said a wait is expected, especially early in the process and she and her staff are preparing to make the process run as smoothly as possible.

Avallone has said she expects to use the nasal version of the vaccine primarily at the Westfield clinic, with the injectable version being used on Nov. 16 at a clinic scheduled for Summit High School. The department has approximately 2,000 versions of the nasal vaccine in stock.

Find out what's happening in Westfieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Avallone is hoping the clinics go smoothly and do not require her to call the police for assistance, as happened at two seasonal flu clinics in recent weeks when larger than expected crowds overwhelmed Avallone and her small staff. She said she has informed the police of what could happen but is hoping for the best. Avallone said she will not subject her staff to potentially dangerous behavior.

Because the vaccine is federally funded, no one can be turned away from receiving it, regardless of where they live. Avallone said she will not be looking for proof of residency for the eight towns served by her department at the clinic, because of the federal guidelines. If the town does not follow federal guidelines, it could jeopordize approximately $250,000 in federal public health funds to help run future H1N1 clinics.

Avallone said she is stressing that only those in the targeted population should receive the vaccine at the clinic tonight. This includes pregnant women, those between six months old and 24 years old, those between 25 years old and 64 years old with a chronic health condition, caregivers of infants under six months old and certified health care workers with direct patient contact. There will be no way to police certain individuals outside of the targeted population who choose to receive the vaccine, but Avallone has been offering stark warnings to those who try.

"If they lie it will take a vaccine from someone who could die if they don't get it," Avallone said. "If a five year old gets H1N1 without the vaccine, they could get really sick."

Scotch Plains-Fanwood Patch Editor Lindsay Wilkes-Edrington contributed to this report.


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