Trying to do the Right Thing

I'd like to think I'm a pretty reasonable person. I make important decisions after careful thought. I try not to be swayed when the media goes crazy and makes the public paranoid.

I didn't lose sleep over the H1N1 craziness. I didn't decide my children must have H1N1 when they were sick in October. We did call the Dr., however, and let them make the call on whether or not my kids needed to be seen (they did) and whether or not they had the flu (they didn't). I researched the H1N1 vaccine and asked our Dr. her opinion. We decided to be safe and have our kids get vaccinated against this virus that most likely won't be much worse than most, but has the potential to be. Shouldn't that have been the hard part?

But even though the vaccine is now available for children with no additional risks in our county, we still can't get it. Why? Because we are responsible working adults who can't get in line between 11:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Our county has a ticket system (kind of like Fast Pass at Disney World) where you wait to get a ticket, and the ticket gives you a time to come back for the shot. The vaccinations are given between 1 and 7 p.m., so that kids don't have to miss school. But if you can't break free from work for a two hour span in the middle of the day to get your ticket, you can't get the vaccine.

You would think they would have a plan for people like us. Or bring the vaccines directly to the schools, like originally planned (too high volume expected to be able to come to Fairbanks, they said). Or have the clinic tomorrow, when all the schools in the county are off, and more people would be able to go (the only clinic in the last two weeks is today). You cannot get the vaccine without a ticket, even if you're willing to wait in the endless line. And you can't send someone other than an immediate family member to get the ticket. And they sometimes cancel the clinics, so if I use one of my precious personal days to get the ticket, they may cancel and then I've wasted a day. And we can't use sick leave.

So I want to do what's right. And not only because I am concerned about the health of my children (although that is my main concern), but becuase being in a school I understand how a vaccinated population can help stop the spread of disease. And I don't want to feel as if we need to be housebound this winter so no one gets sick. So I guess we'll just keep washing our hands, using hand sanitizer, and hoping for the best. Because at this rate, I seriously doubt anyone in my house will be getting vaccinated.