There are no clinics scheduled for Seasonal Flu Shots at this time.
Newtown Health District Newtown Health District
31 Pecks Lane serving the towns of
Newtown, CT 06470 Bridgewater, Newtown
Tel. (203) 270-4291 and Roxbury
FAX (203) 270-1528
NEWTOWN DISTRICT DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
Interim UPDATE H1N1 Flu - November 18, 2009
Vaccination: The Newtown Health District is a Registered Provider for H1N1 (Swine) Flu Vaccine; as are several health care providers in our area. Please check with your health care provider to see if they are providing H1N1 Flu vaccination as well. There are physicians in our area who have also become Registered Providers for H1N1 (Swine) Flu vaccinations.
We are receiving H1N1 Flu vaccine. It comes to us in limited quantities; however, we are hopeful that it will be shipped regularly and consistently, and we will work to vaccinate our residents as efficiently as possible. It is important to note that it is expected that there will be a sufficient supply of H1N1 Flu vaccine in the coming weeks and months and ultimately everyone who wants to be vaccinated will be.
As a Registered Provider, we are obligated to dispense the vaccine in accordance with CT Department of Public Health guidance. Due to the initial limited quantity, priority groups have been established for dispensing the vaccine.
Please see link below to learn more about the piority list
Due to the limited supply of H1N1 flu vaccine, at this time the following vaccine formulations are restricted for the following priority populations:
- Healthy children aged 24 months (2 years) through 24 years
- Healthy household contacts and caregivers of infants less than 6 months of age
- Healthy healthcare workers and Emergency Medical Services personnel who have direct contact with patients or infectious material. The supply of vaccine is not yet sufficient to offer vaccine to all health care workers who have direct patient care contact. Priority will be given to health care workers who have direct patient care contact with children.
("shot") should only be use for the following priority populations:
- Pregnant women
- Household contacts and caregivers of infants less than 6 months of age
- All children aged 6 months through 83 months (age 6 months through 6 years)
- Children age 7 through 24 years with high risk medical conditions
- Healthcare workers and Emergency Medical Services personnel who have direct contact with patients or infectious material. The supply of vaccine is not yet sufficient to offer vaccine to all health care workers who have direct patient care contact. Priority will be given to health care workers who have direct patient care contact with children.
The injectable form of H1N1 vaccine is in short supply and should not be used in healthy persons aged 2 years through 24 years if LAIV is available.
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As more vaccine becomes available, the target groups will also include all persons between the ages of 5 and 24
years old and people aged 25 through 64 years of age who are at higher risk for 2009 H1N1 because of chronic health disorders or compromised immune systems.
Eventually, vaccine will become available to those people who are not in the target groups. Current studies show that people who are over the age of 65 are less likely to get the 2009 H1N1 virus than younger people. Once there is more vaccine available, people over the age of 65 should get the vaccine as well.
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- H1N1 Vaccine intranasal "flu mist" can only be dispensed to healthy individuals aged 2-49 years of age. People with high risk medical conditions cannot receive Flu Mist. Please see link below to learn more about H1N1 Flu Mist.
- We are currently working on vaccinating children 2-10 years of age, pregnant women, household contacts and caregivers of infants less than 6 months old, and health care workers and EMS personnel who have direct patient contact. We will be working with our local health care providers and Visiting Nurses Associations (Bethel, Danbury, New Milford and Newtown) to accomplish this work.
- We will be working toward vaccination for individuals through 24 years of age with high risk medical conditions very soon - this will also depend on the availability of the H1N1 Flu "Shot" (as people with high risk medical conditions cannot receive Flu Mist).
- Parents of school children who fall into this category should be sure that their school nurse is aware of this condition, as we will be looking to the school nurses to help us efficiently identify these students.
- As vaccine becomes more available, we will be scheduling school based clinics for all of the students and ultimately public clinics for all of our residents. Please note that children can only be vaccinated with parental consent. No child will be vaccinated without parental consent.
- At this time, we ask residents to be patient. We are as interested as you are in getting vaccine to our residents as quickly and as efficiently as possible. There will be notifications of when and where to get vaccinated as that information becomes available.
- Newtown residents who fall into the red highlighted category above are asked to call the Newtown Health District at (203) 270-4291 to register for an appropriate clinic
- Bridgewater and Roxbury residents who fall into the red highlighted category above are asked to call either Newtown Health District (203) 270-4291 or the Brookfield Health Department at (203) 775-7315 to register for an appropriate clinic
- Brookfield residents who fall into the red highlighted category above are asked to call the Brookfield Health Department at (203) 775-7315 to register for an appropriate clinic
We encourage everyone who is interested in obtaining a H1N1 vaccination to review the Vaccine Information Sheets for
The H1N1 "Flu Mist" at
and the H1N1 Flu Shot at
We also strongly encourage you to continue to do what you can to protect yourself and your family until you can be vaccinated with H1N1 Flu vaccine:
- Get a seasonal flu shot
- Wash your hands often
- Cover your cough/sneeze or cough into your sleeve
- Wash your hands after coughing/sneezing
- Avoid sick people
- Stay home when you are sick and keep sick children home from school
- Follow your doctor's advice if you become ill
Cases:
Laboratory-confirmed cases represent only a fraction of the likely number of cases in the state because many persons with mild symptoms to not seek care from a doctor or hospital but recover at home. For a list of towns with confirmed cases, please visit www.ct.gov/ctfluwatch.
United States of America: This number changes daily and the most current data is updated each Friday at www.cdc.gov .
PLEASE NOTE: Surveillance: ~The CT Department of Public Health is in close contact with hospitals, physicians, other health care providers and local health departments/districts. The Newtown Health District is in communication with the CT Department of Public Health and our Public Schools Administration and the school nurses regularly; as well as with our agency partners and the area hospitals.
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Prevention: Residents should take precautions to prevent getting or spreading the flu:
- If you get sick, you should stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them. Avoid contact with sick people.
- The most important message at this time is not new: Students and adults who are sick should NOT come to school or work. In particular, stay home if you have flu symptoms: fever and cough or sore throat, sometimes with runny or stuffy nose, body aches, vomiting or diarrhea. To avoid infecting others, please stay home and away from others until you've had at least 24 hours without fever and without the use of fever-reducing medication.
- Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.
- Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.
- Practice other good health habits: get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids and eat nutritious foods.
Symptoms and Treatment: People who become ill with influenza-like symptoms, which include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue, may want to contact their health care provider, particularly if they are worried about their symptoms.~ Some people have reported diarrhea and vomiting associated with H1N1 Flu. Their health care provider will determine whether influenza testing or treatment is needed.~ People who are experiencing emergency warning signs should immediately contact their health care provider.
Patients can be treated with antivirals that may lessen the severity and/or shorten the duration of the illness. The use of the antivirals is determined by the patient’s physician
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H1N1 Flu: H1N1 (referred to as “swine flu” early on) is a new influenza virus causing illness in people. This new virus was first detected in people in United States in April 2009. Other countries, including Mexico and Canada, have reported people sick with this new virus. This virus is spreading from person-to-person, probably in much the same way that regular seasonal influenza viruses spread.
Why is this new H1N1 virus sometimes called “swine flu”? This virus was originally referred to as “swine flu” because laboratory testing showed that many of the genes in this new virus were very similar to influenza viruses that normally occur in pigs in North America. But further study has shown that this new virus is very different from what normally circulates in North American pigs. It has two genes from flu viruses that normally circulate in pigs in Europe and Asia and avian genes and human genes. Scientists call this a “quadruple reassortant” virus.
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Steps for area residents at this time. The most important thing to do right now is to stay informed and to take common-sense steps to protect your health and the health of your family.
For more information on H1N1 Flu:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: www.cdc.gov
What Does Public Health Do For You?
l Protects against environmental hazards
l Responds to disasters and assists the community in recovery
l Prevents epidemics and the spread of disease
l Promotes and encourages healthy behaviors
l Promotes access to quality health service
TEMPORARY EVENT NOTICE
As warmer weather approaches and with summer just around the corner many groups and organizations are preparing for seasonal events such as church fairs, fund raising picnics and carnivals. The Newtown Health District wants to help make these events healthy, safe and successful by ensuring that food served at these events is safe for the public to consume. To do this the health district requires that any operation offering food to the public obtain a temporary food service license. If your facility rents space to groups serving food to the public, please advice them to contact the health district.
Organizers may obtain an application for a temporary food service license from the health district or online (see above) and should submit it at least two weeks prior to the scheduled event. Every applicant will receive a Temporary Food Service Guide containing basic food safety information and personal instruction on proper food handling. To review specific details regarding upcoming events please contact Suzette Le Blanc @ newtownhdsuzette@earthlink.net or by calling the health district at
203-270-4291.
The Newtown Health District is located at 31 Pecks Lane in Newtown. Please contact Newtown Health District for more information and to obtain a Temporary Food Service License application (download application above).
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