Overall the response from parents to the immunization drive for meningococcal disease has been positive.
However, Director of Nursing at the Department of Health, Margaret Sesepasara says it could be better at some of the larger elementary schools.
On Monday, DOH teams started going to public and private elementary schools to give meningococcal vaccine for children whose parents approved by signing consent forms distirbtued last week.
Sesepasara said the schools she worked in are Pago Pago, Aua, Afono and Pacific Horizons.
Of the public schools she said the response at Aua Elementary was great and their team was busy administering immunization shots there.
The number of signed consent forms which were turned in was very high, she said.
She couldn’t say the same about Pago Pago Elementary on the days she worked there.
But the best response according to Sesepasara was at Pacific Horizons. She said parents gave strong support thorugh signing and returning the consent forms allowing their kids to get the vaccine.
Today was the last day for the DOH teams to be at the elementary schools, and tomorrow they will begin administering shots at public and private high schools.
The last day for the school immunizations is February 1st.
DOH will be able to compile a report of all elementary and high school students who have been immunized for meningococcal and will be able to tell those students who have not received the vaccines.
Sesepasara said that list will be given to the Department of Education and each school.
DOE and the schools can use the list to enforce the law which requires that students be immunized before they can be accepted to attend school;
The immunization drive for meningococcal disease follows recent cases in Nea Zealand and Australia which prompted an alert about from the World Health Organization for the Pacific region,
