( The new hospitalizations and deaths are mentioned in the bottom of the article . The new hospitalizations and deaths count is only for Cook County not the whole state of IL )
Swine scare doesn’t skip St. Nick
December 18, 2009
BY MAURA POSSLEY
It’s the usual merry routine for the big guy outside the Sears store at Orland Square Mall. Slip into the red and white suit, tie up the black boots and remain seated for about 10 hours on his Kris Kringle throne.
But in between the visits with hundreds of boys and girls each day, Santa’s taking extra precautions this year.
» Click to enlarge image
Kris Kringle sprays his hands down with disinfectant while working his shift at Orland Square Mall in Orland Park, IL on Thursday December 17, 2009.
Matt Marton/SouthtownStar
The H1N1 pandemic changed the way a lot of us approach the flu season, and Santa’s no exception.
At the Orland Park mall and other shopping centers across the country, Santas are slathering on hand sanitizer, avoiding touching their faces, gargling with mouthwash or saltwater, downing lots of vitamin C and getting plenty of rest.
While he prepares to fight the flu every holiday season, the H1N1 virus has meant increased safety measures aimed at protecting the good boys and girls who endure long lines to see him, particularly because this strain has sickened many younger than age 25. Mall Santas around the country are adopting similar precautions, according to Noerr Programs, which provides Santas to malls in 34 states, including seven Illinois shopping centers.
At the Orland Park mall, meeting Kris Kringle on Thursday were Lexi, 3, and Shaun, 4 months, accompanied by their mother, Kristen Pepper, of Tinley Park.
“Everywhere else (the H1N1 flu) kind of scares me, like Chuck E. Cheese and those places,” Pepper said. “But I didn’t even think of it here.”
Santa-America, a volunteer organization of Santas who visit sick children, lobbied unsuccessfully this fall to allow Santas to be among the first vaccinated - along with health care workers and pregnant women - for H1N1. The group has also launched a flu safety awareness campaign, dubbed “Santa-tize.”
“Santa, probably in the month from Thanksgiving to Christmas, sees more children than anybody,” said John Scheuch, Santa-America’s president of Santa-America.
Though Santa didn’t officially make it onto the Centers for Disease Control priority list, many were vaccinated after explaining their day jobs.
“If Santa were to contract the H1N1 virus, it might be two days before he started feeling symptoms,” Scheuch said. “In the meantime, he could have affected who knows how many children. For Santas in the mall, that’s literally hundreds of children a day.”
Some Santas have opted to leave the famous white gloves - a signature item in family photos - at home this year. Gloves can act as a germ carrier, whereas Santa can simply sanitize his hands between visits without them.
“You’d have to have a truck backed up for you to change gloves each time,” Scheuch said, adding mall Santas can see as many as 40 children in an hour.
Each day amongst Orland Square shoppers, Kris Kringle opts to change his gloves on his twice-daily breaks or after a visit with a child who is showing flu symptoms. He’s also been spotted spraying his gloves with disinfectant when he can.
And there’s plenty of hand sanitizer to go around, with dispensers at Santa’s entrance and throughout the mall’s holiday set.
“Santa always does everything he can to protect the health of himself and the children,” said the Orland Square Kris Kringle, who never breaks character while seeing upward of 600 people each day.
On Thursday, among another crowd waiting their turn on Santa’s lap, was Michael Williams, who’ll turn two on Sunday .
“I’m not overly concerned,” said his mother, Sue Williams. “We don’t take any unnecessary risks. I think a lot of it is just common sense.”
THE H1N1 VIRUS
When our seasonal flu season should have been ending last spring, we saw this new flu virus spread, continuing through the summer to sicken people around the world.
The new flu was different from seasonal strains, affecting more people under the age of 25 and fewer over the age of 64.
Though Cook County health officials have seen a decline in reported cases over the last four weeks, they worry another outbreak of the virus could come early next year, in particular after holiday traveling and gatherings that increase the spread of germs. They encouraged people who haven’t been vaccinated to do so.
2009 DEATHS & HOSPITALIZATIONSIN SUBURBAN COOK
Hospitalizations: 26 cases within the last week, 514 total for the year.
Deaths: Two deaths within the last week, 13 total for the year.
Virus’ Toll by Age Group
0-4 years: 80 hospitalizations, 1 death.
5-24 years: 159 hospitalizations, 4 deaths.
25-49 years: 153 hospitalizations, 3 deaths.
50-64 years: 88 hospitalizations, 2 deaths.
65 and older: 34 hospitalizations, 3 deaths.
Cook County Department of Public Health.
Swine scare doesn’t skip St. Nick :: The SouthtownStar :: http://www.southtownstar.com/news/1946515,121809santash1n1.article
Sebelius: H1N1 vaccine now plentiful
Published: Dec. 18, 2009 at 8:18 AM
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2009/12/18/Sebelius-H1N1-vaccine-now-plentiful/UPI-38581261142296/
WASHINGTON, Dec. 18 (UPI) — More than 100 million U.S. doses of the swine flu vaccine were available Friday as 24 states lifted restrictions on who could get the vaccine, officials said.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said Thursday the vaccine to guard against the H1N1 virus was plentiful, topping 100 million doses, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The newspaper said some U.S. pharmacies are beginning to receive vaccine available for general distribution, ending restrictions that favored those most at risk, including children and pregnant women. Now, the Times said, health officials’ biggest fear is that many people will decide they don’t need the vaccine now because the epidemic appears to be waning.
“We have a wonderful window of opportunity to prevent or lessen a third wave,” Sebelius said at a news conference, noting that in the 1957 Asian flu pandemic, the fall outbreak tailed off but it was followed by another wave early in the new year, perhaps spurred by holiday travel.
Estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate through mid-November, about one in six Americans caught H1N1, and about 10,000 have died, the Times reported.