SHS awaits swine flu vaccine shipment

Kelli Polson

Student Health Services (SHS) expected to receive a shipment of the H1N1 Influenza – commonly known as swine flu – vaccine last week, but it didn’t come.

SHS, which is unsure when the vaccine will arrive, requested 2,500 doses, but the Florida Department of Health (FDH) received a lower number than expected, said Diane Zanto, senior director of SHS. She said SHS will probably receive a “couple hundred” at a time.

The clinic is waiting for the FDH to make a decision on how it will distribute the doses, Zanto said.

“It is likely that (a shipment) will be delivered in the near future, but I have no expectation of a specific date,” said Egilda Terenzi, director of SHS, in an e-mail.

Students will be notified via e-mail when the vaccine arrives. SHS will hold a clinic to administer the vaccine “as soon as” it arrives, Zanto said. SHS will administer the vaccine in a nasal mist form rather than an injection.

The vaccine will be “first-come, first-serve” based on who is eligible to receive it, Zanto said.

People from 2- to-49 years old are eligible. Pregnant women or those who have pre-existing medical conditions like manic depression should not get the vaccine, Zanto said.

Zanto said she could not give a specific number of confirmed swine flu cases, but the number has been “slowly declining” in the last few weeks.

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