Mayors concerned with H1N1 immunization program

Mayor Max Taylor of St. Jacques-Coomb's Cove and Mayor Doug Rose of Hermitage-Sandyville are expressing some serious concerns about Central Health's mass immunization clinics for the H1N1 vaccine that were announced on October 30.

According to the October 30 schedule, the residents of Mr. Taylor and Mr. Rose's areas will have to travel to Harbour Breton to receive the H1N1 vaccination.

Mr. Rose said, "I have written my concerns about the schedule to Mr. Kennedy and Mr. Williams and offered them the Lions Community Center in Hermitage-Sandyville as a venue to hold a clinic here.

"Someone is very unorganized in this matter and, to make matters worse, officials at Central Health are not listening to people who know this area and who know different.

"Just imagine the residents of Hermitage-Sandyville and Seal Cove and the Fortune Bay North area all travelling to Harbour Breton and arriving at the clinic, with the residents of Harbour Breton already there. What are you going to do with all those people?"

Mayor Taylor said that one of his big concerns is that some people in his area, because of the distance to Harbour Breton and the inconvenience of the travel, may not bother to get the vaccination at all.

"What about the students at Fitzgerald Academy?" Mr. Taylor said. "We have to bus 200 plus students to Harbour Breton and have them wait in line-ups for the vaccination?

"Someone has got to do better planning than this in this serious matter."

According to Mr. Taylor, Western Health is offering the H1N1 vaccination to every school in its jurisdiction.

"Western Health has got it right," Mr. Taylor said, "and I can't see why Central Health doesn't do the same thing."

A spokesperson for Central Health said that the same criteria that applied to Hermitage and St. Jacques-Coombs Cove applies to other areas of the region.

The official said that Central Health looked at centralized sites like Harbour Breton and St. Alban's and people from about an hours drive away can access those clinics.

The spokesperson noted that what is happening to Hermitage-Sandyville and the St. Jacques-Coombs Cove area is happening to other communities in Central Health as well. The officials noted that it is very difficult for Central Health to set up vaccination clinics in every single community.

Schedule as of October 30

As of October 30, clinics in the Coast of Bays were scheduled as follows: Conne River, October 30, October 31 and November 1; Harbour Breton, October 31; St. Alban's, November 1; Rencontre, November 2; Gaultois, November 3 and McCallum, November 4.

Target Residents for First Two Weeks

The following information is taken directly from a Central health press release issued on October 30.

During the first two weeks of mass immunization clinics, Central Health will target the highest risk groups throughout the region.

These groups, which have been identified by national experts, include: Individuals under 65 with chronic health conditions; Individuals living in remote and isolated settings or communities; Children six months to five years of age; Health care workers involved in pandemic response or the delivery of essential care services; Pregnant women; and Household contacts and caregivers of persons at high risk who cannot be immunized or may not respond to vaccines and populations otherwise identified as high risk.

Immunizations will be offered to all residents of Gaultois, Rencontre and McCallum during the first week of the program due to their remoteness. All residents of Conne River will also receive the vaccine during the first week of the program due to the established level of risk in aboriginal communities.