Health Department says health care workers need small pox vaccination

<br>McALESTER, Okla. (AP) _ The state health department has recommended small pox vaccinations for health care workers. <br><br>Dr. Timothy Cathey, the medical director for the Bioterrorism Preparedness

Sunday, December 1st 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

McALESTER, Okla. (AP) _ The state health department has recommended small pox vaccinations for health care workers.

Dr. Timothy Cathey, the medical director for the Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response for the Oklahoma State Department of Health, says some health care workers should be vaccinated in the next few weeks.

``We expect to implement in the very near future small pox vaccinations for front-line health care workers,'' Cathey said.

The tentative plan in Oklahoma is to implement Phase I of a smallpox vaccination plan in the coming weeks.

Phase I calls for the vaccination of investigative teams from the health department; nurse vaccinators who would be giving the immunizations; emergency department personnel, including those who work around emergency rooms; and health care response teams.

The vaccinations would be voluntary, Cathey said.

A Phase II plan, if it is implemented later, would include first responders, such as emergency medical technicians and police.

The plans are tentative because a national policy must first be announced, but one is expected to be forthcoming within the next few weeks, Cathey said.

Although enough smallpox vaccines are not available at this time, Cathey and his team at the Oklahoma State Department of Health have been responsible for creating a mass vaccination plan for the state.

Currently, the U.S. has approximately 17 million doses of the smallpox vaccine, and a population of 280 million Americans, Cathey said.

The military has already taken control of 1.7 million of the vaccines, he said.

Infectious diseases have historically been a concern in military campaigns, and recent threats of bioterrorism, last year's anthrax mailings and the possibility of a U.S. attack on Iraq, which is believed to be stockpiling biological weapons, have raised concerns about U.S. vaccine supplies.