Kristin Holtz of the Shakopee Valley News reports:

With November turning to December, Scott County Public Health still has its two largest school districts to reach in the fight against H1N1 influenza.

In-school vaccination clinics began Wednesday in the Shakopee school district. The clinics should take three days to complete with vaccinations set to start in the Prior Lake-Savage School District Tuesday, Dec. 8.

Scott County Public Health began vaccinating children in kindergarten up to age 9 Nov. 17 at elementary schools in Jordan, New Prague, and Belle Plaine, according to Scott County Public Health Director Jennifer Deschaine. The schools were chosen by lottery.

Nurses administered 1,479 doses to children: at Chatfield Elementary in Belle Plaine; Eagle View Elementary in New Market; Falcon Ridge Elementary in New Prague; Holy Cross in Webster; Jordan Elementary School; Oak Ridge Elementary in Belle Plaine; Our Lady of the Prairie in Belle Plaine; Raven Stream Elementary in New Prague; St. John the Baptist in Jordan; St. Wenceslaus in New Prague; and Trinity Lutheran in Belle Plaine. About 60 percent of children at the schools chose to receive the vaccination, according to Deschaine.

The Minnesota Department of Health released new guidelines last week allowing health agencies to offer the vaccine to the full list of priority groups identified by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which includes all children ages 6 months to 24 years.

With the new guidelines, public health will offer the vaccine to elementary students in kindergarten through fifth grade in Shakopee this week and in Prior Lake beginning Tuesday, Deschaine said. The goal is to finish the elementary schools by Christmas.

Health officials will return to schools in Belle Plaine, Jordan, and New Prague to issue a dose to children ages 10 and older who were missed in the first round, Deschaine said. They will also administer a second dose to children 9 and younger.

Vaccination clinics have not been scheduled at the county’s secondary schools.

Deschaine said she is still working with Dakota County Public Health to determine whether there will be any in-school clinics at Burnsville-Eagan-Savage schools located in Scott County.

So far, the county has received three shipments of H1N1 vaccine, Deschaine said. The first was a flu mist given to healthcare workers and first responders.

The next doses expanded to include the first five priority groups, such as pregnant women, infant caregivers, children ages 6 months to 4 years, and youths with chronic disease.
To date, Scott County Public Health has administered 3,086 doses of the vaccine.

“Our goal is always not to sit on the vaccine. We’ll continue to use the vaccine until it’s gone, until our next shipment,” Deschaine said.

Although flu activity was downgraded to regional, Deschaine said a third wave of H1N1 may return by mid-January. A general mass distribution clinic for all priority groups will be held some time in December.

“We are working hard to continue to get as many people vaccinated as possible before that wave would happen because that would dramatically decrease the illness and spread of H1N1,” Deschaine said.

Kristin Holtz is a staff writer for the Shakopee Valley News. She can be reached at kholtz@swpub.com.