County may add nurse for H1N1 vaccinations

In light of suspected swine flu cases sweeping through Whitman County schools, county health officials are now looking to hire an extra nurse on a contractual basis.

The county will need more hands on deck to administer the special H1N1 vaccine (swine flu vaccine), which is set to arrive in October or November, Fran Martin, county health department director, said Tuesday.

The county has a shortage of people qualified to administer vaccinations.

Public schools in the county, excluding the university, had anywhere from three to 12 percent of their students out because of the flu, according to a Tuesday update from the health department.

Hospitals and health clinics around the county continue to see adults with the flu symptoms.

WSU was the hardest hit by suspected cases of the flu, with over 2,000 people reported sick

The county has been getting regular updates from most schools, including a daily report from the Pullman school nurse.

Because of the emergent need for the extra staff, county commissioners approved Martin’s request Tuesday to hire the nurse. Commissioners have been reticent to add new employees because of a $311,000 budget deficit. Martin said she will still need to get the request approved by the Courthouse Collective Bargaining Unit.

“All of that takes a lot of time,” she said. The nurse’s contract will probably be for five to six months.

First priority for the vaccine will be pregnant women, the young- aged four months to 24 years, and health officials giving the vaccine, Martin said.

The county has also stepped up a media campaign to inform the public, creating a flu hotline number (509-397-6358), and updated Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter pages.

They also used $2,000 of a $14,000 pandemic grant from the state Department of Health to make two educational videos in which the public is informed of how to prevent and take action against the flu.