Drive-Through Clinic to Protect Residents Against the Flu

COURT HOUSE – The Cape May County Department of Health has many flu vaccination clinics scheduled for the month of October. The popular free drive-through flu clinic will be held for residents 14 years and older Oct. 5 from 8:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. at Kindle Ford Autoplaza, which can be accessed at exit 9 off of the Garden State Parkway in Cape May Court House.
Health Officer Kevin Thomas reminds people coming to the drive-through clinic to bring completed consent forms with them. “It really is a safety issue both for people getting the vaccine and for our staff and volunteers. Since we’re operating a drive-through clinic, it is not safe for people to complete their consent form while they are driving up to the clinic or by pulling off the side of the road,” explains Thomas.
“We make sure the consent forms are readily available in advance – at the Department of Health, online at www.cmchealth.net, and in local newspapers the week before the drive-through. Please bring a completed form with you and let’s make sure the experience stays a safe one for all,” Thomas added.
Residents are also asked to wear a short-sleeved shirt and leave pets at home. Residents who need assistance with transportation to get to the drive-through clinic can call Fare Free Transportation at 889-3700.
In addition to the drive-through flu clinic, the Department of Health will be holding several clinics for children and their families this month. While supplies last, the FluMist nasal spray vaccine will be offered in addition to the injectable vaccine for eligible persons at these clinics.
As a reminder, the CDC recommends an annual flu shot for everyone older than 6 months of age. Also, the New Jersey Department of Health requires that children less than 5 years old who attend daycare or preschool receive a flu shot each year by the end of December. Children who are not vaccinated will not be able to attend school until the end of the flu season, which is currently estimated as the end of March.
Children and Families clinics:
• Sept. 28,12:00-4:00 p.m.
St. Frances Cabrini Church (2nd and Atlantic
Ave, Ocean City, hall behind church)
• Oct. 1, 2:30-4:30 p.m.
Woodbine Elementary School
(801 Webster St, Woodbine)
• Oct. 20, 3-5 p.m.
Glenwood Avenue Elementary School
(Glenwood & NY Ave, Wildwood)
• Oct. 22, 2-6 p.m.
Department of Health
(6 Moore Rd, bldg #17, CMCH)
To keep up to date on all of the County’s flu clinics, check the website at www.cmchealth.net; call the flu hotline at 463-6581, and “like” the Cape May County Department of Health on Facebook.
For all County flu clinics, if you have a severe allergy to eggs, other vaccine component, or if you have been told by a doctor that you have had Guillain-Barré syndrome, you need to receive the flu vaccine from your personal physician. If you have a severe allergy to Thimerosal, you can receive the vaccine from the Department of Health, but not at the drive-through clinic.