The nationwide swine flu vaccine shortage is hitting UCF, and so far the school has only received 2,000 of the 24,000 vaccine doses it requested from health officials.
That shortage means the mass vaccinations UCF health officials initially told KnightNews.com they hoped to administer to the entire campus within a matter of days apparently won’t be happening in the immediate future.
Instead, UCF has to ration the supply of its 2,000 nasal spray vaccine doses among “high-priority” members of the campus community – and the vast majority of everyday students don’t qualify for this first round.
“We will follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines in distributing our vaccines,” UCF spokesman Chad Binette told KnightNews.com. “We will begin giving the nasal spray vaccines this week to campus faculty and staff who play a vital role in ensuring the health and safety of our students and others in the community.”
That means Health Center staff caring for potentially sick students, as well as campus police charged with keeping campus safe, will be some of the first offered vaccinations.
College of Nursing and faculty and students will also be offered the vaccine, because they may be asked to help administer future vaccines at UCF and provide health care throughout the community, Binette said.
“We also will be providing the nasal spray vaccines initially to our campus resident assistants, as those students may need to help care for ill students on their floors.” Binette said. “In addition, Physical Plant housekeepers, who may be asked to clean the rooms of sick students, will receive the vaccine. Some College of Medicine faculty and staff who are health care providers also will be part of the initial distribution.”
Once the eligible members of those above groups get vaccinated, UCF says they expect at least 1,000 of the vaccines will be available for students. Binette explained the procedure in which UCF will deal with choosing how only 1,000 students out of more than 50,000 will be chosen for these remaining vaccines.
“Students who are age 24 or younger (a CDC high-priority group) will be able to go to the UCF Health Center’s Pharmacy or to Knight Aide, located in Knights Plaza, to pick up a coupon allowing them to get their shot at a specific time and date,” Binette said. “This will allow students to choose a time that is convenient for them, and they will not have to wait long when they go for their appointment.”
KnightNews.com will post an update when we get information from UCF that the coupons are available, and Binette said students will also be notified by campus e-mail and through the UCF Web site before coupons are distributed.
Orange County Health Department spokesman Dain Weister told KnightNews.com that right now there are only limited quantities coming in for everyone in our county and across the state and nation because of a delay in making the vaccine. He confirmed the county did expect to get a lot more vaccines by now.
According to the Associated Press, there were only 14 million doses available last week, even though initial predictions called for 120 million to be ready by mid-October. Government health officials later cut that projection to 45 million. A delay in growing the vaccine seems to be the cause.
UCF says they can request even more vaccines, if 24,000 won’t be enough. But there is no guarantee UCF will even get that initial request – at least right away.
As for costs, students who are able to get a coupon will be vaccinated for free. Faculty and staff who weren’t offered a free vaccine will be required to pay $10, which is cheaper than most local clinics with the vaccine, according to UCF.
Across Orange County, more than 30,000 doses of H1N1 Swine Flu vaccine to date have been allocated to walk in clinics, obstetricians, pediatricians, pharmacies, and hospitals, according to Weister.
UCF’s portion represents about seven percent of the county’s total supply.
Binette said if UCF is given the mass quantities of the vaccine along the lines which were first expected, the school will carry out its mass vaccination plan to distribute it at up to four sites on campus.
Officials still encourage students to wash their hands to help protect themselves from the swine flu, or H1N1 virus.
