FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 2009

H1N1 Pregnancy Vaccination Day
Sponsored by St. John’s Mercy Children’s Hospital and St. Louis County Department of Health

St. John’s Mercy Children’s Hospital, in conjunction with the St. Louis County Department of Health, will be offering free H1N1 influenza vaccinations to pregnant women from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 31. Pregnant women are at high risk for H1N1 flu. In an effort to protect both mom and her baby, a one day event will be held at the David C. Pratt Cancer Center on the St. John’s Mercy campus, 607 S. New Ballas Rd. To reserve your time slot at the St. John’s Mercy event, please visit www.stjohnsmercy.org/h1n1 or call 866-891-6685.

“Pregnant women are not more likely to get the flu, but more likely to experience serious complications,” said Dr. James Bartelsmeyer, director of maternal-fetal medicine at St. John’s Mercy. “Pregnant women should be vaccinated to protect themselves from H1N1 and the seasonal flu. The antibodies produced by the vaccinations also can be passed to your baby and help offer a healthy start.”

“Babies cannot be vaccinated for influenza in the first six months of life,” said Dr. Joseph Kahn, chair of pediatrics at St. John’s Mercy Children’s Hospital. “By offering the vaccination to the pregnant population we also are helping babies have added protection when they go home. If a mother of an infant does get the flu, we still encourage breastfeeding to build the baby’s immunity. Just remember to cover your face with a mask, or express the milk for someone else to feed the baby.”

Along with vaccinations and pampering for pregnant women St. John’s Mercy Children’s Hospital pediatricians will be on hand to answer new mom questions.

For more information about these topics and to see extended interviews with Drs. Bartelsmeyer and Kahn, visit www.stjohnsmercy.org/h1n1. To check on wait time for vaccinations or check out what’s happening at the event, follow on Twitter, www.twitter.com/stjohnsmercy.

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