No date yet on arrival of flu vaccines

There is no exact date yet as to when new influenza vaccines would arrive on Saipan.

“We have met and contacted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention but there is no exact date yet for the vaccines to get here,” said Warren Villagomez, Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. public health and hospital emergency preparedness program director.

CHCC recently issued an advisory about increased incidences of flu-like symptoms in the community.

Although there are few details on how many residents currently have influenza-like symptoms, Villagomez said it is under control.

He said the corporation’s pandemic influenza response team and a surveillance team met yesterday to map out plans to reach out to the community.

“This outreach will prove better so that the doctors can go out there into the community and provide medical care,” he said. “This is the reason why we also have volunteers from organizations as part of the CNMI Medical Reserve Corps because if there is any sickness that they see when doing their distribution, they can contact us immediately.”

Vaccination is important for people at high risk for complications of influenza, such as those with weakened immune systems, pregnant women, children 6 months to 2 years old, and adults 65 years and older.

A Federal Emergency Management Agency worker recently passed away from influenza-like symptoms.

“CDC has given us the confirmation that CNMI is a priority so we will be getting the influenza vaccines soon. We usually request based on 70 percent of the population,” Villagomez said.

The CHCC Division of Public Health highly recommends that the public follow the guidelines for seasonal flu immunization. Other than getting the flu shot, wash hands for at least 20 seconds, avoid the sick, teach about the flu, cover your cough, and have a plan when there’s an outbreak of influenza.

If you are already sick with the flu, contact your healthcare provider before visiting the clinic for advice. By doing this, it will help avoid exposing other people at the clinics.

To get your flu vaccination or should you have any questions about this matter, contact the CHCC Immunization Program at 236-8745 from 7:30am to 4:30pm and after hours at 234-8950 or email chcpublichealth@gmail.com.