Deputies Hold Boy Who Fled Flu Shot
Student refused; was held down for vaccinationBy SHELLEY HANSON Staff Writer
Article Photos
WHEELING - It took the strength of two sheriff's deputies to keep a middle schooler still enough to receive a shot of the swine flu, or H1N1, vaccine at a recent clinic.
During a regular Wheeling-Ohio County Health Board meeting Tuesday, health department Administrator Howard Gamble told board members about the student's attempt to flee Wheeling Middle School during a vaccination clinic held there last Friday.
He noted the boy's mother could not bear to watch the scene and left the gymnasium. Out of apparent fear of receiving the injection, the student ran out of the building. The school's resource officer, Ohio County Sheriff's Deputy John Haglock, coaxed the boy back inside. Once at the shot station, however, Haglock apparently needed some help keeping the boy still, and another deputy assisted.
"He tried to run. I looked over and saw two sheriff's deputies holding a kid down," Gamble said. "Mom took off, she couldn't take it. You had one nurse with the needle, two deputies holding him, one nurse is grabbing hands - because that's what they want to do, to go after the needle. And that's the last thing you want."
Gamble said as soon as the nurse gave the boy his injection and told him he was done, he hopped up like nothing had happened.
"For the most part they go very easy. As far as the shots, every once in awhile you have to hold down one or two - but that's why mom is there or dad is there," Gamble said.
He added after the meeting that Friday's incident was the only time Ohio County deputies have held a student during a shot.
"They're mostly there for parking and directions. They also know the kids. ... They were our first line of contact when setting up the clinics," Gamble said.
Neither Sheriff Pat Butler nor Haglock could be reached for comment. A sheriff's department official said Haglock is on vacation for the next two weeks.
During a clinic Tuesday at Bridge Street Middle School, similar scenes took place - though not quite as dramatic and not involving officers of the law. A couple sets of parents could be seen keeping their children from wiggling away while a nurse quickly administered the vaccine.
Ten-year-old Austin Price, the son of Jennifer and Josh Price, decided to take the shot standing up and with no assistance from his mom or dad. He even smiled for a photograph.
And on a scale of 1-10, how painful was the shot?
A "4," he answered.
By 7:30 p.m., 391 students from Bridge Street and Elm Grove and Middle Creek elementary schools had been vaccinated. Gamble expected that by the clinic's end at 8 p.m., more than 400 would have received the inoculation.
The final two student clinics in Ohio County are:
- For students of Warwood Middle School, Corpus Christi, Warwood and West Liberty Elementary schools from 3:30-8 p.m. Thursday at Warwood Middle School Gym.
- For students of Wheeling Park High School from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at WPHS Activities Center.
Tuesday's health board meeting was held in the county commission board room - located on the second floor of the City-County Building - due to the health department's board room being used for storage.
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Ladydiamond
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11-11-09 4:47 PM
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Run quick, the sky is falling! No, it's not the falling sky that's going to take us all down. It's the swine flu. Quick run for your life! Panic in the streets! OMG! We're all doomed! Oh please people, get a grip. I have never heard of anything so asinine in all my life. Law enforcement holding down a child for a flu shot. What the heck were law enforcement doing there anyway? Sheesh! A lot of supposedly intelligent people in the USA are falling for one of the biggest money making medical tricks in the book. Flu shots are a money making scheme. I have never had and never will take a flu shot of any kind. Anyone with a fairly decent immune system can withstand the flu, even the swine flu.
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Shark88
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11-11-09 4:45 PM
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No Vern, shame on the news media for only reporting some of the facts about B.Obama and shame on us for not knowing the entire story about him before casting votes.
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Shark88
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11-11-09 4:45 PM
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No Vern, shame on the news media for only reporting some of the facts about B.Obama and shame on us for not knowing the entire story about him before casting votes.
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VERN33
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11-11-09 4:37 PM
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Just another half-a** reporting job that Porta-John had to make headlines out of. Shame on this paper for only reporting half the facts, and shame on us for not knowing the entire story before making our comments.
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Shark88
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11-11-09 4:26 PM
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Wait a minute Micha..it's not the medical community that created this national emergency, it's the national health czar or his imperial highness in D.C. who ordered the rules as to how the CDC is to report the numbers. They started the scare campaign or "crisis" earlier this year and it hasn't stopped since.
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Micha1
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11-11-09 3:21 PM
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My younger sister was diagnosed with it, however they did no testing to prove one way or the other, they just treated it, to be "on the safe side". It's the medical community making it an epidemic, not the actual virus itself.
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Micha1
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11-11-09 3:19 PM
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Ultimately, it should be left up to the child being given the shot, within reason. If they are old enough to say, "No, I do NOT want that," they should not be forced to recieve it, reguardless of their reasons for not wanting it, whether it's "I'm scared of needles" or "It's not worth the risk."
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GeneCar
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11-11-09 3:13 PM
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One thing , Obama by himself can NOT declare a National Health Emergency. the senate and house have to vote a majority to make it legal. and the flu clinic broke their own rules, a parent or guardian must be present for a minor to receive the shot. The parent left the building. Someone commented that over a thousand (1,000) have died from this flu. Well do the math. over 500,000 are supposed to have had the flu that makes the death rate .002%. the regular flu kills more people than that a year in the U.S.
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poc1999
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11-11-09 2:46 PM
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NO ONE IS EVEN TALKING ABOUT THIS ANYMORE. A PANDEMIC??? REALLY?? THIS IS THE MESSIAH'S "KATRINA". THE FIRST OF MANY PROBABLY.
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Shark88
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11-11-09 2:40 PM
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I've heard of a few people who had it but do not know anyone personally who has the H1N1 virus.
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Shark88
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11-11-09 2:12 PM
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I just think that when you look at how liberal Obama is and how he wants the government to control everything, you can't help but get suspicious when he calls this a national emergency - especially when every case of flu is now called h1n1 without benefit of verification. Top that off with Cap & Trade, Health Care programs, corporate buyouts, controlling what CEO's do and make, legislation for homosexuals, and so on and what else can you conclude? I've even heard that all gun owners will be required to identify their gun ownership on next years tax returns plus pay a $50 fee on each gun they own. I haven't verified this yet but it wouldn't surprise me. The point is how can anyone really trust this administration?
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tgreen7597
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11-11-09 12:57 PM
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I think the student has the right to say yes or no for the shot. He should not be held down against his will
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formerohvalleyresident
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11-11-09 12:44 PM
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Rover, “Society has the right and responsibility to protect it's citizens.” OOOOK, in WWII “Society” rounded up all Japanese Americans simply on the basis of race and put them in internment camps. Wouldn’t your same logic say that we should round up all RADICAL Muslims and put them in an internment camps on the basis of the “war” on “Man-caused disasters”? That may have saved the lives of perhaps 2500+ citizens to date. The death toll of H1N1 is a little over 1000. Just curious…..
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rover1958
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11-11-09 11:38 AM
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Most of the 'comments' denouncing the boy being held to receive the flu shot are so wrong. Society has the right and responsibility to protect it's citizens. He was there to get the shot because he is in the priority group for the limited vaccine available. His Mother (no Dad, eh) should have controlled him. When I grew up in Wheeling, the county health pounded on the door of a kid I went to Jr high with. They TOOK HIM AWAY AND LOCKED HIM UP in quarantine at the county TB home for MONTHS! Yup, if you had TB, away you went! By the way, Eisenhower was President, so it's not a 'Democrat' thing. By the way, the good General was a too old, bad heart, golf loving*****who diddled his enlisted female driver during WWII. Kinda like today's leaders....some things never change.
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formerohvalleyresident
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11-11-09 11:28 AM
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Cat, “a good smack on the rear would have settled this kid down”? Maybe, but if that happened in a Libcity like SF or NY, likely you would be arrested by the police or at least get a visit from Child Protective Services looking to take your son away. If this child lived in MA, the parents have no CHOICE on the matter, vaccinate or go to jail. Under the “Pelosi Plan” if you don’t buy health insurance, go to prison for 5 years, no CHOICE. On the other hand, a woman has “the right to choose”. And if you a Muslim terrorist, well my God you just can’t rush to judgment on him, just because he went to a radical church, lectured fellows soldiers on how Muslims should kill fellow troops, tried to join Al Qaeda, and screamed Allah Allah etc while shooting 40+ people! Lib Spin Doctors must be getting lots of overtime these days!
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MikeEbigg
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11-11-09 11:22 AM
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Don't vaccinate me, bro!
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leviandrio
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11-11-09 10:40 AM
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10% to 15 % of the population has a bonafide fear of needles. It's actually a medical condition. No one "likes" to get a shot but this small percentage of the population passes out when they get a shot or get their blood taken. I'm in this group & I can't even "think" about getting it done without getting upset. The mother should have stayed for support to get the child through it, even if she didn't look while they were giving it to him. I did that with my kids.
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popeye
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11-11-09 10:32 AM
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catlover- The Pres is the one that called for a national emergency over this flu. So yes, he made the call and is responsible.
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catlover2
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11-11-09 10:20 AM
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Over the top,a good smack on the rear would have settled this kid down.Sure sue the cops for doing what the mothers supposed to do.By the way is there anything the president is not responsible for?
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Shark88
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11-11-09 9:54 AM
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Laceyd....just a shot in the arm huh? If its just a shot in the arm, why are millions of people refusing to take the shot? Let's call it a political shot in the arm. That's more like it. That is the difference with this particular vaccine.
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Highland
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11-11-09 9:24 AM
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Interesting how the Obama administration is SO intent on getting this drug into all our children. Of course, all they have to do is declare an emergency. For them, freedom is an emergency which must be dealt with immediately.
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wvjeeper
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11-11-09 9:19 AM
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what happened to our freedom to choose? is every thing that "I" as a veteran fought for lost? but yet we are overseas telling other countries we are fighting to make you free? why would they want this kind of freedom? are we not government run and controlled? what gives? it's kind of a slap in the face on veteran's day.
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laceyd
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11-11-09 9:12 AM
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Duuhhh people, the article doesn't say "Deputies held boy down while he kicked and screamed and told them to get off of him", it just says they held him still while he got a shot and then the boy hopped up like nothing happened. Believe me, he was not traumatized in anyway. I have an 11 and 15 year old niece who still freak out and have to be "contained" when they get shots. Shame on the mother for leaving because "she couldn't bear the sight". Oh please, it's just a shot in the arm, she should've been there with her kid calming him down!
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justmytake
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11-11-09 9:09 AM
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Typical Obama mentality Let the government handle it. Mom is too good a friend to make her child do what she says.
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justmytake
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11-11-09 9:07 AM
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First of I was there it was not two deputy sheriff's it was a Wheeling PD officer and a deputy. Maybe if mom gave her son some discipline she could handle him. Good job mom abandon you son when he is afraid.
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