The H1N1 “swine” flu has hit the Coastside, and with the annual influenza season beginning in the coming weeks, health officials are urging local residents to take extra steps to stay healthy.
Coastside residents are being asked to wash their hands, sneeze into tissues, and — best of all — to go get the H1N1 flu vaccine from their local physician.
But there’s a problem. Supplies of the flu vaccines at Coastside medical offices are nearly depleted, and most local doctors are now giving the immunization to only the highest-risk groups. As for everyone else, avoiding the illness could come down to a roll of the dice.
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Since the new strain of influenza was first identified in April, national health officials saw the potential for a severe pandemic, and they organized the development of a vaccine. But producing sufficient supplies and distributing that vaccine has been problematic.
San Mateo County Health officials have reported they received only 38 percent of their total allotment of the vaccine, approximately 27,000 doses that arrived in late October.
“We get what we get,” said Robyn Thaw, spokeswoman for the health department. “Right now none of the providers have the amount they ordered … there’s just kinks in the system.”
In total, the U.S. government has ordered 250 million doses of the vaccine, but as of this week, fewer than 28 million doses have been shipped -- about 3 million to California. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site warns there is a lag for shipping and distributing the doses.
So far, 343 cases of swine flu have been confirmed in San Mateo County, including eight fatalities.
Right now, county health officials say they are not sure when a larger supply of the vaccine will be available. Until then, health officials have been urging physicians to give priority to high-risk groups, including children under three years old, adults over 65 years old, pregnant women, and people with chronic problems such as respiratory problems, weak immune systems, diabetes or obesity.
Everyone else is being asked to take the standard precautions to avoid sickness, such as washing hands, practicing good hygiene and avoiding sick people.
Local schools are taking a “no exceptions” approach to the flu danger, noted Cabrillo Unified School District superintendent Rob Gaskill. In coordination with the county, the school district has completed a flu response plan that it posted on its Web site and it has sent two letters home to parents regarding H1N1.
“We are operating under the assumption that any case of influenza may well be H1N1 and we are responding accordingly,” Gaskill wrote in an e-mail. “This year’s flu season can still take a turn for the worse, but I think we’re as ready as we can possibly be.”
In most years, outbreaks of influenza typically increase through the winter months and peak around early February, according to county health records.
Half Moon Bay physician Dr. Josefina Enriquez says she prepared a list of high-risk patients in advance of her shipment of the vaccine, but now she has only a few doses left. Being around so many patients requesting the flu vaccine has made her concerned — not just for the health of her patients, but also for her medical staff and herself.
“I got the regular flu shot, but not the one for H1N1,” she said. “But I’m as strong as a bull … knock on wood.”
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