First Shipment of Injectable Swine Flu Vaccine To Coastal Health District

Pregnant Women and Emergency Workers are top priority.

By: Tina Tyus-Shaw | WSAV News 3
Published: November 04, 2009

(Savannah) Slower than expected. Long lines across the country as people wait for the Swine Flu shot. In Dallas before sunrise Wednesday morning hundreds of people lined up. "It's just so frustrating." A different picture in Savannah. The Chatham County Health Department just received the
injectable form of the H1N1 Vaccine, but there's not much to go around. "It's 1,300 doses for amongst all 8 of our counties. So a very small amount," says Dr. Diane Weems. And a difficult decision choosing who gets it. The priority…two groups…first, pregnant womeno. "We know that they're one of the groups most at risk for complications from H1N1 illness. We also know giving the vaccine potentially will provide some protection to their baby when their baby's born who won't be able to get the vaccine for the first few months of life." Also on the list emergency medical personnel. "They're part of a very important part of our critical care workforce to respond to those who are very ill." Some people have taken advantage of the Nasal Spray Vaccine that arrived almost a month ago, but the bigger demand is for the shot. Dr. Weems says right now there are no good answers about the slow delivery. "I think everybody is working together to do the very best we can to reach our top target groups as quickly as we can, but right now there is simply not enough vaccine to go around." Dr. Weems told me she doesn't want people to get false expectations, but she hoping more of the injectable vaccine will be available in the coming weeks. You may want to check with some private providers for the vaccine. So far, The Chatham County Health Department has given 1,600 doses of the H1N1 Nasal Spray to those 2 to 24 year olds.