County to host another flu vaccination clinic

The Yuma County Public Health Services District will host another H1N1 vaccination clinic Thursday.

The clinic is from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the Southgate Mall in Yuma. There is no cost to individuals for this vaccine. People who want to receive the H1N1, also known as swine flu, vaccine will go through a screening process to determine a person's risk category. In addition, people must have identification and show proof of Yuma County residency with something such as a bill.

At the clinic, health care workers will provide both the inactivated influenza vaccine, also known as the flu shot, for the H1N1 virus. They will also provide live attenuated influenza vaccines (LAIV), also known as the flu mist.

According to a news release from the district, the clinic will continue to include individuals that fall within Tier 1 and Tier 2 priorities.

Tier 1 includes:

 • pregnant women

 • children ages 6 months to 18 years old

 • health care workers with direct patient care

 • people who live with and care for infants less than 6 months old

  Tier 2 includes:

 • all health care and emergency medical services personnel

 • all persons aged 6 months to 24 years old

 • persons ages 25 to 64 years old who have medical conditions that put them at higher risk for influenza-related complications (e.g. diabetes, heart disease, asthma and kidney disease)

With county health care workers giving out more than 15,000 doses of the vaccine to date in Yuma County, Public Health District Director Becky Brooks said the "community has been great."

"Their patience and understanding have certainly contributed to how smoothly the clinics have run," Brooks said.

According to the release, this will be the last clinic in November, however the Health District will continue to provide clinics in December.

Doses of the vaccine are distributed by the state to each of the 15 counties in Arizona and based on the population size in that county. No other immunizations will be available at these specialized clinics.

For more information about the clinics or the flu, call the Yuma County 2009 H1N1 phone line from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at (928) 373-1025.

For more information about the novel H1N1 virus or the seasonal flu, visit flu.gov.

---

Stephanie A. Wilken can be reached at swilken@yumasun.com or 539-6857.

IF YOU GO:

Where: Southgate Mall

When: 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Thursday

What to bring: Identification and proof of Yuma County residency, such as a bill with your name and Yuma County residence on it