Press Release 

July 27, 2007

La Marque – With the start of a new school year rapidly approaching parents will be very busy getting school supplies, school clothes and many other things children will need.  The Galveston County Health District would like to remind parents that making sure their children’s immunizations are up to date is another task they should not overlook.  Schools require that children be properly immunized.   

Dr. Mark Guidry, Galveston County Health Authority, says “Vaccines are a great public health achievement.  Every year, immunization clinics see hundreds of parents and children seeking to meet school-entry vaccination requirements.   The Health District prepares for this 'back-to-school' rush as its largest immunization campaign of the year.   However, we want to remind parents to make sure children are 'immunized on-time' - which best protects the child and avoids the long lines during the annual back-to-school rush.”  

The Health District will also be hosting their fifth annual Kids Health Fest, August 9^th through the 29^th.  Vaccinations will be given in the La Marque office at 1207 Oak Street on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.  On Wednesdays immunizations will be given from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.   

A second location where immunizations may be obtained is the Galveston Immunization Clinic in the Island Community Center at 4700 Broadway which will be open on Mondays and Fridays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.  

In addition to usual clinic locations, this year the District will also partner with the Mall of the Mainland to help parents seeking immunizations.  District Immunization staff will be in the mall’s center court on Saturday August 4^th from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. to provide back-to-schools shots.  Parents may conveniently shop for back to school items and at the same location, get their child immunized for school entry.  

Many children may already be in the electronic immunization registry, known as ImmTrac.  For those children all a parent needs to provide is the child’s name and date of birth to verify needed immunizations.  If there is no record for a child, parents will be given the opportunity to enroll their child in ImmTrac which make their child's immunization records electronically available in frequent circumstances when parents do not have a paper immunization record on hand.  

Mall of the Mainland management contacted the Health District with a desire to assist in immunization efforts.  “We need community support from individuals and the business community all year long in order to make sure our children are protected from illness,” says the District’s Director of Community Health Services Dr. Cassandra Arceneaux.  “By allowing our staff to offer immunizations and related records in such a publicly accessible place as Mall of the Mainland their management has shown they truly care about their community.”   

Parents will also have an opportunity to obtain immunizations at a Back to School Health Rally and Education Fair sponsored by the Dickinson/Bay Area NAACP on August 18^th from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.  The Rally will be held at Dunbar Middle School, 2901 23^rd Street in Dickinson.  

Once again volunteers and incentives will be used to make the experience of getting an immunization as pleasant as possible.  Members of the Health District’s Immunization Advisory Council have assisted efforts by meeting regularly to brainstorm innovative ideas on how to reach more kids.  “We want to make sure that getting shots is as pleasant an experience as possible for both parents and children,” says Dr. Arceneaux. "We appreciate and welcome community support in terms of volunteers and donations for incentives."    

The Galveston County Health District includes both childhood and adult immunizations in its strategic health plan which is a tool guiding their activities through 2010.  

For more information on Galveston County Health District immunization activities or to volunteer time or needed incentives such as children’s sticker, books, tokens or entertainment, call (409) 938-2244 or visit www.gchd.org.

For More Information Contact:
Kurt Koopmann
Public Information Officer
Galveston County Health District
409-938-2211 or 409-392-0007
kkoopman@gchd.org