Crowded flu clinic in Battle Creek

CALHOUN COUNTY, Mich. (NEWSCHANNEL 3) – As trick-or-treat night approaches, health officials want to make sure that candy is the only thing getting passed off between houses.

Officials have released some safety guidelines to stop the spread of H1N1 while trick-or-treating. Parents are advised to carry hand sanitizer when taking the kids around, and to make sure they keep their hands away from their eyes, nose, and mouth to keep the germs away. Perhaps most importantly, if your child is sick, keep them home.

While this time of year is known for its scares, fears about the flu and H1N1 seem to be spreading faster than the bug itself, and that's led to long lines at flu shot clinics, with some even shutting down early.

Hundreds lined up for a clinic in Kalamazoo, only to see it close early, and all over West Michigan, places have been running out of vaccine. However, the H1N1 vaccine is slowly beginning to trickle into health departments across the state.

On Friday, the Calhoun County Health Department held its third vaccine clinic, this one only for children and pregnant women.

People began lining up more than an hour before the clinic opened to get one of the limited number of vaccines. The lines wrapped around the hallway as parents packed in, hoping that their kids could get one of just 600 vaccines available on Friday in Battle Creek.

"It's really frustrating, especially as a teacher, because we're around germs all the time," said Jennifer London.

Frustration was a common theme, both from parents and the health department.

"Extremely frustrating," said parent Rene Stevenson, "trying to get to work and keep everyone safe."

"Ideally if we would have had it a month ago we would have been able to hopefully reduce a significant amount of the sick kids that we have had in the school system," said Jim Rutherford of the Calhoun County Health Department.

And while the kids who got shots at Friday's clinic will be protected, their parents say it's also worrisome not being able to get vaccinated themselves. That is something those at the health department are working hard to make happen.

"Once we start getting quantities, shipments of that nature we can expand out," said Rutherford.

The Health Department has ordered 2,000 more doses of vaccine, and hopes to have at least some of those available by the first week of November so they can have another vaccine clinic.