Flu Clinic Update

In preparation for the public flu clinic held Wednesdays from 1:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. at Evangel Church, the Thunder Bay District Health Unit has made changes to improve the flow of traffic and to advise people of the status of clinic intake.

A parking attendant will be available to direct visitors to parking spots and advise when the Evangel Church parking lot is full. Central Evangelical Church just south of the clinic site is available for overflow parking. Clinic visitors are reminded they should not park on Balmoral Street.

In addition, a sign will be posted at the Evangel Church driveway to notify the public if the parking lot is full and if the clinic intake has to be cut off.

"The only reasons client intake would be cut-off prior to the posted end-time is if we did not have enough vaccine to give to those standing in line, or if we estimate there are more people in line than we can accommodate prior to the end of the clinic," said Darlene Binette, Manager of Infectious Diseases.

Waiting times are often the longest during the first few clinics of the year, and when a surge of people arrive just before the start time of the clinic.

The public is reminded there are several flu clinics scheduled throughout the community until December 21st. Visit www.tbdhu.com/flu or call 624-9082 for dates and locations.

Please remember that there is no Flu Clinic scheduled for Evangel Church on November 2, 2005.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 21, 2005

West Nile Dead Bird Collection Summary

The Thunder Bay District Health Unit has wrapped its collection of dead birds for the 2005 season of West Nile Virus Surveillance.

The following preliminary numbers are available:

	2005	Previous year
Number of Dead Birds Reported	159	265
Number of Birds submitted for Testing -	51	45
Number of Birds Testing Positive for West Nile Virus -	10	14

A full report including information about mosquito trapping and analysis is expected by December.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 19, 2005

Shipment Delay and Increased Numbers at Flu Clinic

During the Wednesday afternoon flu clinic held at Evangel Church today, a delayed shipment caused a temporary halt in vaccinations. The vaccine has since arrived in Thunder Bay and the clinic continues until 5:30 pm today.

The situation was compounded by an unexpected surge in the numbers of people who arrived for vaccines at the start of the clinic. This caused considerable traffic backup and the Thunder Bay Police were called in for traffic control.

We appreciate the patience on the part of those who came out to the clinic and apologize for any inconvenience that this unforeseen situation may have caused.

Regularly scheduled flu clinics continue with the next public clinic for High Risk individuals taking place Friday, Oct. 21 at West Thunder Community Centre at 915 S. Edward from 9:30 am - 3:30 pm. More information on other clinics can be found at www.tbdhu.com/flu or by calling 624-9082.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 19, 2005

Shipment Delay and Increased Numbers at Flu Clinic

During the Wednesday afternoon flu clinic held at Evangel Church today, a delayed shipment caused a temporary halt in vaccinations. The vaccine has since arrived in Thunder Bay and the clinic continues until 5:30 pm today.

The situation was compounded by an unexpected surge in the numbers of people who arrived for vaccines at the start of the clinic. This caused considerable traffic backup and the Thunder Bay Police were called in for traffic control.

We appreciate the patience on the part of those who came out to the clinic and apologize for any inconvenience that this unforeseen situation may have caused.

Regularly scheduled flu clinics continue with the next public clinic for High Risk individuals taking place Friday, Oct. 21 at West Thunder Community Centre at 915 S. Edward from 9:30 am - 3:30 pm. More information on other clinics can be found at www.tbdhu.com/flu or by calling 624-9082.'

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 12, 2005

Evangel Church Becomes Site of Wednesday Free Flu Clinics

Today, public health staff are lining up at the Evangel Church on Balmoral Street to be among the first community-members to receive this year's flu vaccine during a Staff Flu Clinic.

Public Health staff, along with other health care workers and essential services workers (i.e., ambulance, fire and police staff), are part of a high-priority group to be vaccinated because they come in contact with special populations -- seniors and people with chronic medical conditions -- who are at high risk of complications from the flu.

From now to early December, flu clinics will be held throughout the City and District. Clinics for high-risk populations are the focus of October's clinics. Clinics for the general public are the focus for November.

However, anyone can visit the Evangel Church site on Wednesdays from 1:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. for a free flu shot, starting today. This site will replace the Health Unit's Balmoral Street clinic since it offers the public more parking space and waiting room.

An estimated 500-1500 Canadians, mostly seniors, die every year from pneumonia related to flu and many others may die from other serious complications of flu. This is the sixth consecutive year of the Universal Influenza Immunization program (UIIP) in Ontario.

With the threat of a pandemic influenza on the world horizon, the annual flu vaccine provided by public health units in Ontario becomes an important weapon in the community ability to respond. The vaccine will be available at free flu clinics in the Thunder Bay District at no charge to all residents of Ontario (approximately 12 million people) aged one year and older. Children 6 months to one year should see their doctors.

Flu clinic schedules are available on the Health Unit website (tbdhu.com/flu) and are available in local newspapers.

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Food Prices Up According to Health Unit Survey

An annual survey of the cost of nutritious food undertaken by the Thunder Bay District Health Unit shows a 6% increase from last year and the biggest jump since the survey started in 1998.

In June, 2005 the Health Unit's Nutritious Food Basket survey showed that healthy eating cost $601.44 per month for a reference family of 4. This is $29 more a month compared to 2004.

In addition to this year's jump in cost, Thunder Bay residents are paying at least $60 more a month than the provincial average.

"Global events have a big impact on our cost of living and we are already seeing the effects. June was long before increased transportation costs have had their full impact," says Catherine Schwartz Mendez, Public Health Nutritionist with the Thunder Bay District Health Unit. "We are predicting an especially difficult winter for many people in our region."

The Nutritious Food Basket (NFB) is Ontario's standardized food costing tool that measures the cost of healthy eating. Each year the Health Unit collects data from 5 grocery stores in the city and 1 in a district community to monitor the cost of eating nutritious food. It is based on a list of 66 foods based on Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating and Canadian food preferences. Items in the NFB are the lowest priced item available in each store in a specified purchase size, regardless of brand. It does not include diapers, formula or baby food, nor household supplies such as soap, detergent, toilet paper, toothpaste or cleaning products.

The cost of nutritious food is directly linked to a person's ability to maintain health. The role of the Health Unit is to educate people about what is contributing to the cost of food and what actions they can take to mobilize the community to fight this issue.

The single most important predictor of health problems is low income. Since the deep cuts in social assistance in 1995, the cost of food and other living expenses have continued to rise. This puts those living on low incomes at even greater risk of many health problems including heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

There are a number of things that individuals can to do curb the cost of food. They can learn more about food action programs such as community kitchens, gardens, gleaning, Good Food Box and school meal programs. People can also buy locally produced food as much as possible. Local food doesn't cost as much to transport and the money goes back into our local economy. The Health Unit web site has more information in their Food Security topic.

"As a community, we can develop a Food Charter to help guide local policy-makers, like some other forward-thinking cities in Canada," suggests Schwartz-Mendez. "This would provide a framework to bring community members together around a common vision of a sustainable food system."

To find out more about the Nutritious Food Basket survey and how to get involved in local food action programs, visit www.tbdhu.com.

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