Judy Seckler
DOWNTOWN - Glendale Unified seventh-graders this year will find going
back to the school a healthy shot in the arm.
School District will require kindergarten and seventh-grade students
to have the following immunizations at registration:
Seventh-graders must have a second vaccine of measles and a series of
Hepatitis B vaccines, said District Head Nurse Lynda Burlison. The
seventh-graders can receive either the two-dose or three-dose version of
the Hepatitis B vaccine.
A tetanus/diphtheria booster is also recommended for seventh-graders.
Kindergartners and seventh-graders will also need two doses of the
Measles-Mumps-Rubella vaccine.
New kindergartners and seventh graders are required to show proof of
inoculation when they register for school.
"Things will be different this year,' Burlison said. "Last year was
the first year we had new vaccine guidelines, and we tried hard to work
with students and parents. But this year, the district will be monitoring
the guidelines more closely."
The district normally requires three oral vaccines of polio for
seventh-graders. Even if a student was immunized with three polio doses
before the age of 4, a fourth dose is still required. Students who
received one of their polio doses after 4 must still have a total of
three doses.
The district also requests four doses of DTP for ages 4 to 6. If those
doses were before 4, an additional dose is required.
Kindergartners are required to get tuberculosis testing. It is highly
recommended but not required for seventh-graders.
At Marshall Elementary School, school nurse Carolyn Stultz said her
department monitored students during the school year to keep current.
"I do a class on the importance of getting the Hepatitis B vaccine,"
she said.
"The students are told they must meet the requirements for junior
high."
WHERE TO GO FOR FREE IMMUNIZATION:
* Glendale Health Department, 501 N. Glendale Ave., Room 104, 8 to 11
a.m. and 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. Call 500-5762
* Verdugo Hills Hospital Clinic, Hospital Council Room, 1812 Verdugo
Blvd., 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Aug. 26. More dates will be scheduled. For more
information, call 952-4774. A parent or legal guardian has to accompany
the child. The hospital is offering free Hepatitis B and MMR booster
immunization.
