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IMPORTANT INFORMATION
ATTENTION: PARENTS OF ALL STUDENTS ENTERING GRADES 6-12
SCHOOL YEAR 2010-2011
Immunization requirements for the state of Indiana have recently changed. Students in grades 6-12 will now be required to have the following immunizations to begin the 2010-2011 school year.
5 DTP (1 Tdap on/after age of 10)
4 POLIO
2 MMR
3 HEPATITIS B
2 VARICELLA (CHICKEN POX)
(Or written documentation of disease history)
1 MENINGOCOCCAL CONJUGATE
(MENINGITIS)
Students will also need a signed CHIRP consent form on file.
Additional required vaccines this year include: Tdap, varicella, and meningitis vaccines. Please check with your doctor or school nurse if you do not have documentation of all these required vaccines. According to Indiana Code (IC 20-34-4-5), students will not be allowed to attend school without these immunizations.
Please feel free to call the school nurse with any questions.
Parents are encouraged to schedule an appointment with their child's health provider as soon as possible.
Other community resources include:
Madison County Community Health Center
765-641-7499
Madison County Health Department
765-641-9524
Tuesdays and Thursdays 9:00am -12:00 noon, First Thursday of each month 4:30-6:30pm, and Third Wednesday of each month 4:30-6:30pm
St. John's Children's Clinic
765-646-8299
8/16/2010 Immunization News Release
Madison Co. Health Department (Anderson): The Madison County Health Department is serving an average of 75 or more children during their two and three-hour walk-in immunization clinics. According to Dixie Cummings, Madison County Health Department Nursing Supervisor, “This number is beginning to exceed the safety threshold in terms of how many shots the nursing staff can administer during any one clinic.” Due to the variety of shots, the varying dosages, recordkeeping, and documentation required for each child, vaccinating children has become more complicated than many realize.
With limited staff and office space and the increased caseload brought on by Indiana’s new vaccine requirements for 6th – 12th grade students, the clinics have become overwhelming for all involved. While the newest immunization requirements for 6th-12th grade students do pose a strict deadline, it is …”the safety of the children and staff that must be our first priority”, says Ms. Cummings. In order to maintain an orderly clinic and avoid a serious error in safety, the Madison County Health Department must set a limit to the amount of children immunized during each clinic. Therefore a numbering system will be put into place as soon as (tomorrow) Tuesday, 8/17/2010, which will limit the Tuesday and Thursday 9am – 12pm clinics to serving only the first 50 children per each clinic. The bi-monthly evening clinics held on the 1st Thursday and 3rd Wednesday of each month, 4:30pm- 6:30 pm, will begin seeing only the first 30 children per clinic, starting as soon as Wednesday, August 18th. The Health Department regrets having to set these limits as it is the mission of the department to ensure all Madison County residents have access to services supporting the health and well-being of their families. To that same end, we want to ensure that our clients are receiving their injections in a safe, organized, healthy environment.
The Madison County Health Department recognizes the urgency and importance of meeting the school deadlines and it will continue to immunize as many children as possible. However, the agency cannot sacrifice safe medical protocols during its immunization clinic. The health department apologizes for any inconveniences and encourages families to seek out other medical providers for their immunizations if they are unable to access the health department clinics.
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