BOISE -- There's been a change to Central District Health Department's swine flu vaccine clinic for this Saturday. Instead of holding two clinics -- the department is holding only one.
There are a couple of reasons.
It seems public interest might be waning and the health department wants to help ease burnout with their staff.
"At first we had a good turnout at each place, but then in the middle of the day it dropped off to almost nothing," Dave Fotsch with Central District Health said.
Last Saturday the crowd was a far cry from the turnout two weeks ago when the lines wrapped around the building.
"We're trying to figure out whether interest is dying off or whether there were just other things that people were more interested in," said Fotsch.
Interest was so low this past weekend, Central District Health says it had more than 2,000 vaccines leftover, so this weekend they're making a change. Instead of holding two clinics, there will only be one -- at the former Kmart on ParkCenter Boulevard. Slimming down should help ease staffing concerns too.
"We are using our personnel six days a week, some personnel working seven days a week. And after two and a half to three weeks of this, they are honestly getting tired,” Fotsch said.
The waning interest means Central District Health is expanding its priority groups. Adults 25 to 64 years old with chronic health conditions will now be given vaccines.
And look for Central District Health to expand the swine flu vaccine program even more in the near future.
"We are looking at our vaccine supply this week and next week and we will determine soon whether we will go back into the schools for the school-based vaccination programs," Fotsch said.
Also, Central District Health isn't taking as many calls from the public.
At the height of the outbreak, Fotsch says they were answering 650 calls a day. Now, they're averaging about 240 per day.
Central District Health will be holding this Satuday's swine flu vaccine clinic at the former K-Mart store on ParkCenter Boulevard.
It will be open to priority group members from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., or until the clinic runs out of vaccines.
The priority groups include:
- Pregnant women
- People who live or care for children younger than six months of age
- Medical personnel
- Healthy people 6 months to 24 years old
- And people 25 through 64 years of age who have chronic, health disorders or compromised immune systems.
Those priority groups are the same for Southwest District Health.
Nothing has changed for its clinic, which will be held from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. this Saturday at the former Sportsman's Warehouse in Nampa.
