Waterloo | Influenza Update

Plans for H1N1 vaccination

27 October 2009

The H1N1 vaccine was delivered to Health Services today. Health Services has hired an additional nurse to assist our staff in immunization over the next 6 weeks. We are offering immunization in the following three ways:

• Students, union members, staff and faculty who fall in the groups which are recommended to receive priority are invited to come to Health Services beginning as soon as the vaccine is here, Monday to Friday between the hours of 9:00 and 11:00 am and between 2:00 and 4:00 pm, to receive adjuvanted H1N1 flu vaccine on a first come first serve basis.
• H1N1 immunization will be provided two evenings per week on the first and second weeks of November from 5:00 to 7:00 pm. The dates of the evening clinics will be announced by invitation to those who work/study in health-related, child care and residential settings. The invitation will be extended to other members of the community as we receive additional vaccine and we are able to arrange for nurses to staff the evening immunization sessions. Please check the Daily Bulletin for announcements about evening clinics.
• Flu clinics held in SLC are scheduled for Nov. 18, 19 and 20 and are open to everyone in our community, families and visitors who are interested in receiving the H1N1 adjuvanted vaccine. Please bring your health card, WatCard or driver’s license with you to the clinic. Refer to the answers to frequently asked questions below for the information you will need to provide informed consent. (See additional messages for children and pregnant women below.)

Recommended priority groups to receive the H1N1 vaccine

Individuals with chronic medical conditions may be at increased risk of catching H1N1 and of developing serious complications from the flu, such as pneumonia or respiratory distress. In particular, people with the following medical conditions are at increased risk:

• Heart disease
• Diabetes
• Asthma and chronic lung disease
• Kidney disease
• Blood disorders
• Severe obesity
• Liver disease
• People with weakened immune systems (people taking cancer drugs or people with HIV/AIDS)
• Neurological disorders
• Healthy children 6 months to under 5 years
• Health care workers
• Household contacts and care providers of persons at high risk who cannot be immunized (e.g. infants <6months) or may not respond to vaccines (such as immune compromised people)
• Pregnant women with pre-existing health conditions and healthy pregnant women of 20 weeks gestation or more

Health Services message for parents of children younger than 6 years of age:

We understand that no parent wishes their child to be subjected to an unnecessarily traumatizing vaccination experience. We wish to remind you that Health Services nurses do not routinely care for children. We recommend that you take your children who are less than 6 years of age and those older children who do not normally tolerate vaccination well, to your child’s usual health care provider for flu vaccination. For information about community clinic schedules see www.waterlooregionpandemic.ca or call the flu information line at Region of Waterloo Public Health 519-883-2289.

Health Services message for pregnant women:

Since rates of H1N1 illness are rising and unadjuvanted vaccine will not be available until 2nd week of Nov. (estimated) and immunity takes up to 14 days to develop, Ontario is recommending:

• All pregnant women with pre-existing health conditions and healthy pregnant women of 20 weeks gestation or more should speak with their health care provider about receiving the adjuvanted vaccine.
• Healthy pregnant women in the first half of their pregnancy are at less risk of complications from Influenza and can wait to receive the unadjuvanted vaccine when it is available.

The most up-to-date information for pregnant and breast feeding women may be found at www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/alert-alerte/h1n1/fs-fi-pregnancy-grossesse-eng.php and www.sogc.org/h1n1/infopregnantwomen_e.asp.

Please speak with your prenatal health care provider regarding vaccination, since our nurses will not be able to discuss your specific health care needs during our immunization clinics. If you and your doctor determine that H1N1 adjuvanted vaccine is best received at Health Services clinic, please ask your physician to fax an order on office letterhead to Health Services at 519-746-5023 in advance of your visit.

Answers to Frequently asked Questions:

What is an Adjuvant ?

• An adjuvant is added to the vaccine to boost the individual’s immune response; it helps boost and speed up the body’s ability to fight a virus.
• The adjuvant added to the H1N1 vaccine is AS03, which is an oil-in-water emulsion.
• It includes naturally occurring oil (call squalene), water and vitamin E.
• The substance used to maintain the oil in suspension is polysorbate 80 which is found in other vaccines.
• Adjuvants have been used in other vaccines for decades.
• All safety data to date indicates that adjuvanted vaccine is as safe as unadjuvanted.

What people need to know before receiving the H1N1 Flu vaccine?

/www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/alert-alerte/h1n1/vacc/know-savoir-eng.php?option=print

What are the options: Getting the vaccine versus getting the flu and taking an antiviral?

www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/alert-alerte/h1n1/vacc/pdf/options-eng.pdf

Do people who have had influenza-like illness need to have the H1N1 influenza vaccine?

People who did not have laboratory confirmation of influenza A or Pandemic H1N1 should receive the H1N1 vaccine even if they had symptoms of influenza, since there are many other viruses that can cause similar symptoms. Vaccinating people who have already had H1N1 influenza infection will not be harmful.

Is the Seasonal Influenza vaccination available at Health Services?

Health Services does not have the seasonal flu vaccine and recommends that anyone interested in this vaccination attend the clinics hosted by Waterloo Region Public Health. For information about community clinic schedules see www.waterlooregionpandemic.ca or call the flu information line at Region of Waterloo Public Health 519-883-2289.

We will monitor the flu experience in Waterloo Region and make the decision to stock and immunize with seasonal influenza vaccine if seasonal influenza begins to appear in our Region.