• Safety Of The H1N1 Vaccine
• What You Should Do If You Think You Have The Flu
• What You Can Do To Stay Healthy

Seasonal Flu Vaccines
Trinity Clinic has received and dispensed all of our seasonal flu vaccines for the 2009-2010 flu season. People wanting the seasonal flu vaccine should call their local public health department or 2-1-1 or check online at www.211Texas.org for availability.

H1N1 Vaccines
Trinity Clinics are receiving limited supplies of the H1N1 vaccine. By recommendation of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the Texas Department of State Health Services, these vaccines will be administered first to our patients at a higher risk of medical complications from influenza. Other priority groups and subsets of those groups will be addressed as the vaccine supply allows, followed by availability to non-priority groups.

Priority groups currently eligible for the H1N1 vaccine include:

• Pregnant women because they are at higher risk of complications and can potentially provide protection to infants who cannot be vaccinated;

• Household contacts and caregivers for children younger than 6 months of age because younger infants are at higher risk of influenza-related complications and cannot be vaccinated. Vaccination of those in close contact with infants younger than 6 months old might help protect infants by “cocooning” them from the virus;

• Health care and emergency medical services personnel because infections among health care workers have been reported and this can be a potential source of infection for vulnerable patients. Also, increased absenteeism in this population could reduce health care system capacity;

• All people from 6 months through 24 years of age

            • Children from 6 months through 18 years of age because cases of 2009 H1N1 influenza have been seen in children who are in close contact with each other in school and day care settings, which increases the likelihood of disease spread,

            • Young adults 19 through 24 years of age because many cases of 2009 H1N1 influenza have been seen in these healthy young adults and they often live, work and study in close proximity, and they are a frequently mobile population, and

• Persons aged 25 through 64 who have health conditions associated with higher risk of medical complications from influenza.

If you are a Trinity Clinic patient and part of any of the described priority groups and need to be vaccinated, please call your primary care provider’s office to schedule an appointment.

Stay Up-To-Date
If you would like to receive updates on the availability of H1N1 vaccines and other flu related news:
            o Follow us on Twitter
            o Become a TMFHC Fan on Facebook
            o CDC website: www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu
            o DSHS website: www.texasflu.org
            o Dial 2-1-1 the Texas Information and Referral Network