CLEAR CREEK PUBLIC HEALTH WOULD LIKE CITIZENS TO BE AWARE OF VACCINATIONS AVAILABLE IN-COUNTY

Hepatitis A is a liver infection caused by a virus. The virus is spreading from person to person and causing outbreaks around Colorado. It is very contagious, causing liver infection that lasts a few weeks or a serious illness lasting many months.

Hepatitis A spreads by:
Touching objects or eating food that someone with hepatitis A handled.
Having sex with someone who has the hepatitis A virus.
Swallowing food or water that is contaminated with even a tiny amount of feces (poop) from an infected person.

Some people with hepatitis A don’t have any symptoms. Other people do develop symptoms, including:
Fever
Feeling tired
Upset stomach and vomiting (throwing up)
Diarrhea
Dark urine or clay-colored stool
Pain in the joints and stomach
Jaundice (yellow skin or eyes)

Adults at increased risk for hepatitis A:
People who are transient or experiencing homelessness.
People with substance use issues, such as use of injection and non-injection drugs.
People who are in county or city jails.
Men who have sexual contact with men.
People who live with, have close contact with, or have sex with someone who has hepatitis A
People living in overcrowded places, have less access to health care, poor nutrition, and lack of facilities to maintain personal hygiene.

Hepatitis prevention:
Get vaccinated. The vaccine is safe and effective
Practice good hand hygiene. Thoroughly washing hands with soap and water after going to the bathroom and before eating or making food.
Use your own towels, toothbrushes and eating utensils.
Don’t share food, drinks, or smokes with others.

Public Health Officials Urge Parents to Make Sure Kindergartners are Up-to-Date on Vaccinations.

In the midst of the largest measles outbreak in the U.S. in nearly three decades, public health officials representing Adams, Arapahoe, Denver, Douglas, Jefferson, Clear Creek, and Gilpin counties are calling on parents and caregivers to keep measles out of Colorado by making sure kindergartners are vaccinated before school starts.

Colorado’s 2018-2019 rate for the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine among kindergartners was 87.4 percent, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE). In the Denver Metro region, the rate was 89.1 percent. Neither is high enough to protect communities from a measles outbreak.

“These MMR rates need to be higher to ensure measles does not spread across Colorado and the Denver Metro Area,” said Dr. John M. Douglas, Jr., Executive Director at Tri-County Health Department. “Add to that having problems with pockets of children or adults with even lower vaccination rates. That’s the recipe for an outbreak to begin and exactly what has happened in other states during 2019.”

Kids need two doses of measles-containing vaccine, one at 12-15 months and a second at 4-6 years, to be protected. The second dose is required before kindergarten entry in Colorado.

“The measles vaccine is safe — and it works,” said Judy Shlay, MD, Associate Director of Denver Public Health. “Measles can be a very serious illness and is a public safety issue. It’s up to all of us to create immunity in our communities and protect others who can’t be vaccinated.”

Please contact Crystal Brandt Local Public Health Nurse if you have questions or want to vaccinate your child. Crystal Brandt PHN 303-670-7545 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.