Health and Community
Services
November 20, 2009
Mass
Immunization Clinics Open to General Public
Effective immediately,
all individuals will be eligible to receive the H1N1
vaccine, the Honourable Jerome Kennedy, Minister of
Health and Community Services, announced today. Students
in Grades 10 to 12 will receive the vaccine beginning
next week within the school system, where possible.
�Today we received 35,000
doses of the H1N1 vaccine and we expect to receive a
further supply over the weekend, allowing us to start
offering the vaccine to the general public,� said
Minister Kennedy. �Vaccine uptake among our previous
target groups has been strong. It is our intention to
offer our available supply of vaccine so that all
individuals who want the vaccine can receive protection
as soon as possible.�
Beginning this afternoon,
and for today only, Eastern Health and Central Health
will extend operating hours at mass immunization clinics
to offer the vaccine to the general public. After today,
Eastern and Central clinics will reopen on Monday.
Western Health and Labrador-Grenfell Health will hold
mass immunization clinics tomorrow. After tomorrow,
these clinics will reopen on Monday as well. All clinics
will operate on a first-come, first-served basis, and
will use a numbering system. For specific details
regarding clinic locations and times, please visit
Regional Health Authorities websites or contact the
1-800 numbers:
Eastern Health
www.easternhealth.ca or 1-877-752-4358
Central Health
www.centralhealth.nl.ca or 1-877-311-2613
Western Health
www.westernhealth.nl.ca or 1-877- 632-H1N1(4161)
Labrador-Grenfell Health
www.lghealth.ca or
1-877-896-0422
Immunizations will be
given over the weekend, and into next week, to
individuals in long-term care facilities, personal care
homes, those in receipt of continuing care and acute
care patients being discharged from hospital.
These clinics are also
open to children requiring a second half dose of the
H1N1 vaccine. It is critical that children not present
for the second half dose of vaccine unless they meet the
following criteria:
- All children ages
six months up to but not including three years of
age;
- Children ages three
up to but not including 10 who have a chronic
illness; and
- Children must have
received their first half dose a minimum of
21 days before receiving the second half dose
(Parents are asked to bring their child�s
immunization card with them).
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Media contact:
Tansy Mundon
Director of Communications
Department of Health and Community Services
709-729-1377, 685-2646
tansymundon@gov.nl.ca
2009 11 20
3:00 p.m.
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