State-Journal.com - Cars line up for swine flu vaccine

Photo By Hilly SchifferHope Quire watches her daughter Olisa Quire, 7, get the H1N1 nasal mist during the Franklin County Health Department's drive through Clinic Friday afternoon.

Photo By Hilly SchifferSharma Klee, a nurse, gives Jarod Mann, 7, the H1N1 nasal mist as his brothers Tyler Mann, 5, and Zack Mann, 3, watch from their family's mini-van during the Franklin County Health Department's drive through clinic Friday afternoon.

Although it may not have been her goal, Pat Whitley, 70, was first in line for the swine flu vaccine at the Franklin County Health Department off the East-West Connector.

Whitley, 70, was not about to pass up this first public opportunity Friday as she waited in her van for the drive through process to begin.

Sitting in the lane next to her was 21-year-old Mary Yagel who falls in the category of those 6 months to 24-year-olds who are at greatest risk.

Although Whitley does not meet the age guidelines, she does meet the health guidelines – a low immune system the result of chemotherapy every six weeks as a treatment for her rare form of rheumatoid arthritis.

However, after about 20 minutes, health department director Paula Alexander faced some unexpected concerns that she said she needed to address before the next drive through Nov. 21.

Many people showed up who were not eligible to receive the vaccine.

“We do the best we can and we know we have folks going through here today who are not eligible, but at the point they get to us, it is logistically impossible to take them out of the line,” Alexander said.

“We need to do a better job next time of getting this vaccine to those who are actually eligible by the CDC guidelines. That is something we are going to have to work on.”

One woman, who would not identify herself, said that even though she was not eligible she was a state government employee and feared getting swine flu.

As advertised, health department personnel started promptly at noon. By 12:02, the first two cars – Whitley and Yagel – were leaving the premises – the quick turn around the result of planning and fine-tuning by the staff.

On hand to help things run smoothly were Red Cross volunteers Carolyn Underwood, Jan Fowler, Rose Blandford and Director Paula Rutledge.

And of course it was all hands on deck for the health department staff.

Alexander met with nurses, staff and volunteers prior to the troops heading outside. On hand were Deron Rambo of Frankfort Emergency Management and John Lile, the health department’s emergency coordinator. The two would direct and divert traffic from the connector around Coffee Tree Road.

“I don’t want cars backed up on the connector,” Lile said earlier in the week. “That’s too dangerous.”

‘”The injectable vaccine and the nasal mist arrived on a wing and a prayer,” said Alexander explaining the shipment had just come in.

Alexander and nursing director Tammi Bertram spent their time assessing passengers for the type of protection each would get; the nasal mist for children and injections for others.

However, mom Christy Rezo, 31, was a bit concerned about her 3-year-old actually receiving the live nasal virus. Alexander allayed her fears explaining the live virus is actually a cleansed form, totally safe for her son.

“I’m going to let him have the nasal mist, but I just came with concerns,” said Rezo.

The planning by the health department staff was evident when just 45 minutes from the start of the drive through clinic, only five cars waited in the initial line to enter the grounds.

“It hasn’t been too bad,” said Lile, standing on the side of Glenns Creek Road.

“I think we’ve just about got this knocked out,” he said, as he and a Frankfort police officer held the remaining five cars until others exited the lot.