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SBU students get free H1N1 vaccinations
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| | | Stony Brook University students line up for an H1N1 flu shot in the Student Activities Center. Over 1,000 took advantage of the free vaccination.
Photo by Jennifer Choi (click for larger version) | |
November 04, 2009 | 03:53 PM
Hundreds of students lined up at Stony Brook University's Student Activities Center on Oct. 21 to receive the H1N1 vaccine.
Available for free to students aged 18 to 24, the H1N1 vaccinations were administered as a nasal mist or injection in the Traditions Lounge, where volunteers, university police and health care workers helped organize the event.
Lawrence Zacarese, assistant chief of police and director of emergency management at SBU, said the university is focusing on students through the age of 24 to follow guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has deemed this group a priority. "It's largely what our campus community is based on," Zacarese said, noting that there are about 24,000 students on campus, of which 10,000 are dormitory residents.
While a second round of vaccinations were available to the priority group on Monday, the assistant chief said university officials hope to expand the opportunity to get vaccinated to staff and faculty. "We've ordered thousands" of vaccines, Zacarese said. "We're lucky to have gotten ours quickly."
Because students often interact in "cramped classrooms," Zacarese said it's difficult to "socially distance" themselves from one another, making it easy for germs and viruses to spread. While both the nasal mist and injection forms of the vaccine provide the same results, Zacarese said the CDC offers recommendations on which method is preferable for individuals with certain medical conditions. Those with asthma, for instance, are recommended to receive the injection, according to the assistant chief.
Elizabeth Milano of Smithtown, a psychology major and health and wellness minor at SBU, volunteered her time at the Oct. 21 event as a member of the university's Influenza-like Illness Task Force. Milano, 21, said the task force was established this fall to provide information about illnesses and vaccinations.
Of the 60 members of the task force, about a dozen served as volunteers last week, helping students register for the H1N1 vaccine. On Oct. 21, nearly 500 students were vaccinated, according to Milano, while another 685 students received the vaccine five days later. The volunteer said she encouraged those eligible to get vaccinated because it's "completely safe," "free" and "potentially could prevent serious illness." "Vaccines are the most effective thing," she said, "and that's what we stress."
Psychology major Jillian Kirk of Lake Grove said she decided to get vaccinated because the H1N1 virus is "so prevalent in colleges and with the young people." Kirk, 19, said she has also been "conditioned " by her mother to receive all beneficial vaccines. "I think they work," she said, noting that she is also a "big fan" of the hand sanitizer Purell and uses it before and after every class.
Kristin Smith, a psychology major from Atlanta, said she arrived 45 minutes early to line up for the vaccine. After receiving the nasal mist, Smith, 19, said she decided to get vaccinated because it's an important step in remaining healthy. "I'm really careful," she said. "I never touch door handles."
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