Carolyn Male MP, State Member for Pine Rivers, would like to make people aware that the Queensland Government has begun the roll out of school swine flu vaccination clinics across the State.

Carolyn Male MP said a clinic to provide the free Panvax® H1N1 vaccine will be held at Pine Rivers State High School and Bray Park State High School.

Vaccination clinics in Pine Rivers will begin this Saturday at:

- Pine Rivers State High School on 27 March 2010 from 9am to 3pm
- Bray Park State High School on 27 March 2010 from 9am to 3pm

“Parents of children in all Queensland schools and day-care centres will soon receive a letter from Chief Health Officer Dr Jeanette Young providing advice about the vaccination and details of the clinics that will be held in their area,” Carolyn Male MP said.

“A list of clinic locations and dates is available from schools, childcare centres, the Queensland Health Call Centre 13 HEALTH and the Queensland Health website.”

Carolyn Male MP said any member of the community could attend and receive the free vaccine, not just parents and families of students.

“I urge all people in the Pine Rivers region to take advantage of this opportunity to be vaccinated,” Carolyn Male MP said.

Carolyn Male MP said this collaborative initiative between the Federal Government and the Bligh Government, and Queensland Health and Education Queensland will help to ensure the swine flu vaccine is even more accessible for Queenslanders.

The vaccine is already available through GP clinics and other vaccine service providers and over 613,500 Queenslanders have already been vaccinated - around 15 per cent of the State’s population.

Expert advice from world and national health authorities is that a second wave of the pandemic is likely to occur in Australia, and that will appear in April or May this year.

The vaccine has been shown to be safe and effective in both adults and children.

Visit http://www.health.qld.gov.au/swineflu/ or call 13HEALTH (13 43 25 84) for a detailed list of all clinic locations and dates throughout Queensland.