Since the H1N1 flu will likely hit Wood County long before any vaccine reaches Northwest Ohio, local
public health officials are suggesting that residents prepare for the virus.
Schools have already stepped up their cleaning efforts to keep germs from spreading like wildfire among
students. Industries are encouraging sick employees to stay home, and are strategizing about how to keep
vital operations functioning with fewer employees.
But now it’s the average citizen’s turn to get prepared, according to public health officials.
"It’s going to be a while till we get the vaccine, so it’s going to come down to prevention,"
said Amy Jones, communicable disease nurse at the Wood County Health Department.
The advice is simple. To avoid getting sick, wash hands often since H1N1 spreads like the regular
seasonal flu. If sick, stay at home and try to stop the spread of the virus by sneezing or coughing into
tissues or shirt sleeves. Don’t send sick kids to school, so plan ahead for alternate care.
"People themselves need to think individually" about how to prevent and stop the spread of the
virus, said Pat Snyder, public information officer for the health department. "You need to have a
plan in place."
Wood County has had two confirmed cases and one suspected case of H1N1 flu this summer. The two confirmed
cases involved adults, and "they have both recovered," Jones said.
Since the regular seasonal flu is normally dormant during the summer, the continued spread of H1N1 has
health officials concerned – especially since the expected date for vaccine completion and delivery
keeps being pushed back.
"We’ve been seeing flu cases through the summer. Typically there’s a break," Snyder said.
"We do expect to see an increase in cases this fall," with more deaths expected across the
nation.
According to Wood County Health Commissioner Pam Butler, the latest projections for HINI vaccine
distribution is late October. It is still unknown how much of the vaccine Wood County would get.
"We hear numbers, but that changes all the time," she said.
When the vaccine does arrive, health department officials have to decide who gets the first shipment of
shots. According to Centers for Disease Control guidelines, the most vulnerable populations are pregnant
women and their household contacts; caregivers for children under 6 months old since those children
cannot be vaccinated; children ages 6 months to 18 years old since they are often in close contact with
each other; adults age 19 to 24 since they frequently live in close quarters and are very mobile; ages
25 to 64 who are at high risk for medical complications from the flu; and health care and emergency
medical personnel.
Unlike with the seasonal flu, senior citizens are not high risk for H1N1 since that age group seems to
have built up some immunity to this strain of flu.
The logistics of immunizing a large number of people will be further complicated if the demand is a lot
greater than the supply, especially if the vaccines arrive in shifts.
"How do we handle only having a partial supply at a time," Snyder said. "We’re trying to
prepare for a moving target."
Since the vaccine isn’t available now, health department officials have been meeting with concerned
groups in the county to discuss prevention plans.
"We’ve definitely been working with the schools," said Trish Bernath, emergency planner with
the health department. "Each school has their own internal plans. They want their teachers to know
the proactive steps they can take to protect their classrooms." Many are stepping up their cleaning
efforts during the day.
Though several schools across the nation closed last year because of a few cases of the H1N1 virus, most
local school officials are planning to close only if there are so many flu cases that it is difficult to
operate -similar to the regular flu.
"They know how many teachers they need to carry on classes," Bernath said.
Local industries are also preparing for H1N1 by suggesting that employees not show up to work sick, and
making plans to operate with skeletal staff.
"Some are wondering, is the health department going to shut us down in the midst of a H1N1
pandemic," Snyder said. "We don’t want to close anyone down."
In addition to H1N1, the health department staff also has to immunize the public against the seasonal
flu. A large vaccination clinic is planned for Oct. 8, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., in the Junior Fair
Building at the Wood County Fairgrounds in Bowling Green.
The plan is to set aside morning for immunization of seniors, the afternoon for the general public and
emergency responders, and the evening for children and pregnant women.
During that clinic, physicians will be available to talk about H1N1.
To help spread information about HINI, the health department is also planning a series of four public
forums in different areas of the county next month.
"We’re trying to talk to as many of the groups as possible," Butler said.
The county has been holding pandemic influenza planning meetings for a few years, and the public is
welcome to join in those, Butler said. That group meets the fourth Thursday of every month at 7:30 a.m.,
at the Wood County Health Department.
