Palatine District 15 first in line for swine flu vaccinations

After much anticipation, Palatine Elementary School District 15 is the first announced school in the Chicago suburbs to set up student vaccinations for the H1N1 virus.

Palatine, one of the largest elementary districts in the state with 12,000 students, will serve as an example and test case for other schools to administer mass inoculations for students.

"All other school districts will be watching us," Assistant Superintendent of Administrative Services James Garwood said.

The voluntary vaccinations will be provided Thursday, Oct. 29, and Friday, Oct. 30, at 12 of the district's 20 schools in the Palatine ZIP codes of 60067 and 60074. Vaccines are also expected to be available at private schools in those ZIP codes at the same time.

Inoculations at District 15's schools in Rolling Meadows are expected in mid-November, and at the district's schools in Hoffman Estates by the end of November.

The vaccines will be distributed at other school districts chosen by size, poverty level, and access to health care. They are listed in order by ZIP code at cookcountypublichealth.org by clicking on "flu information," "municipalities/first responders," and "school vaccination schedule."

No dates are given for ensuing vaccinations, but Arlington Heights is sixth in line and Schaumburg 10th.

District 15 will hold an informational meeting with interpreters to answer parents' questions and have them fill out medical forms at 6:45 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21, at Winston Campus, 900 E. Palatine Road in Palatine.

Buses will take parents to and from the meeting starting at 6 p.m. that night from several large apartment complexes, including Rand Grove, Edgebrook, Turtle Creek, Ports of Call, Country Glen, and Dundee Corridor.

Both the nasal spray vaccine and the injected vaccine will be available. Which shot each child gets will be determined by medical considerations, not simply by parents' choice, Garwood said.

Parents are not encouraged to go with their children to get the shots, but will be allowed to do so if necessary.

As with any needle jab, some kids will be upset, Garwood said, adding, "We anticipate tears."

For children 9 and under, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control recommends two doses, three to four weeks apart. The schools will provide only the first dose, which does provide some protection, but children will have to get their follow-up doses elsewhere.

Only enrolled students are eligible for the District 15 shots, not kids from other schools.

School workers will also be eligible to get vaccinated only if they fall into one of the high-risk priority groups: pregnant women, health and emergency medical workers, caregivers for children under 6 months, children 6 months to age 24, and those 25 to 64 with chronic medical conditions like asthma or heart disease that make them susceptible to flu complications.

Typically, about 60 percent of the student population complies with getting a recommended shot, but that participation may be higher in this case, Garwood said, because of heightened concern.

The H1N1 virus has been reported as a factor in the deaths of 86 children nationwide this year, and 11 in the past week, including a 14-year-old Naperville girl who also had a heart condition.

Those giving the vaccinations will include school nurses, and volunteers from the county, American Red Cross, hospitals, and elsewhere, who must undergo background checks and be licensed to administer the shots.

Palatine police will help with security and parking.

The Cook County Department of Public Health has not yet received the vaccines that will be given at the schools, but anticipates them by Tuesday or Wednesday, spokeswoman Amy Poore said.

The county will also set up eight vaccination sites for the general public, and numerous other providers will provide the service as well.