Swine flu shots for students moved up

That has led health authorities to conclude that there will definitely be insufficient health care workers at the 500 contracted hospitals to carry out the immunization program, according to CDC officials.

A shortage in health workers nationwide was also another factor affecting the smooth implementation of the immunization program, the CDC said.

The DOH has ordered 10 million doses of the vaccine from Taiwan's Adimmune Corp. and another 5 million doses from the multinational pharmaceutical company Novartis to cover an anticipated nationwide demand of 12 million doses.

Due to the spread of H1N1, a total of 936 classes at 511 schools nationwide have been closed as of Monday night, accounting for 0.62 percent of the total, according to CECC statistics.

Hsieh said that as the number of infection cases among elementary and junior high schools continued to rise, the government's contingency “3-2-5” policy is creating pressure for parents, teachers and students.

Under the “3-2-5” policy announced on Aug. 18, classes at kindergartens, primary schools, junior and senior high schools, as well as cram schools and day-care centers, must be closed for five days to prevent cluster infections, if any two students in the same class are diagnosed with H1N1 within three days.

Parents complained that there is currently no standard policy on when the classes can be made up, with some schools requesting students make up the classes in the evenings, on weekends or during school breaks.

Hsieh urged the Ministry of Education to persuade the CECC to review and change the “3-2-5” class closure policy to minimize inconvenience for parents, students and teachers.

To date, Taiwan has recorded 504 hospitalization cases of swine flu, including 27 deaths and 41 people remaining in hospital.

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