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Olmsted County secures venues in case of massive H1N1 outbreak

10/27/2009 6:00:01 PM

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By Jeffrey Pieters
Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN

Olmsted County is lining up large venues to serve as H1N1 flu immunization centers in the event of an outbreak.

• Interactive: H1N1 Pandemic

The first of these concretely arranged is the University Center Rochester Regional Sports Center. County commissioners on Tuesday unanimously approved an agreement with Rochester Community and Technical College setting the terms of use.

The Regional Sports Center contains a large fieldhouse and other facilities.

County officials will go on to negotiate agreements to use the city-owned National Volleyball Center at Century High School, Mayo Civic Center, and several Rochester schools as immunization centers.

Activating a center is a conditional action that depends on how far the flu outbreak spreads, as well as the vaccine supply.

Assuming the greatest amount of each, the county could vaccinate some 1,100 people per hour. The rate is based on county performance in a 2007 mass vaccination of city and county employees at the Regional Sports Center.

Olmsted County Public Health is in partnership with Mayo Clinic and Olmsted Medical Center to coordinate vaccine supply and delivery of shots.

The facilities agreements are being negotiated for the county by Public Health and the Homeland Security-Emergency Management departments.

Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU) and the state government are co-named in the Regional Sports Center agreement with RCTC.

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There are 4 comments - Display All Comments

KingKong
Rochester, MN

Posted on 10/28/2009 at 8:39:33 AM

This won’t do us much good if the vaccines aren’t available for the general public. By the sounds of it, we will all have already gotten the virus and recovered before a round of shots comes available to me.

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kay1234
Rochester, MN

Posted on 10/28/2009 at 10:30:09 AM

I think they are more concerned with the second wave in the spring.

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Natural
Olmsted, MN

Posted on 10/28/2009 at 12:46:40 PM

Despite all the panic and hype about the H1N1 pandemic and the rush to immunize people in droves against the virus, the fact is—so far—the outbreak has been fairly mild. Take your vitamin D and you won’t get sick!

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JHJM
rochester, mn

Posted on 10/28/2009 at 3:12:58 PM

Really Natural, come tell that to my 5 year old daughter who has been in bed for a week or the hundreds of dead childres parents. I also have asthma and according to these stats that is not a good combination.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/10/28/asthma.swine.flu.h1n1/index.html
Mayo has had vaccine since Oct. 8th and only used it for employees,kids and some sick patients why is Olmsted County left out?

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