By KALEY CONNER

kconner@dailynews.net

As local health care providers continue to vaccinate high-risk populations, it's hoped the H1N1 vaccine soon could be available to the general public.

In fact, it's possible some doses of the vaccine could be available to Ellis County residents in as little as two weeks, said Butch Schlyer, the county health administrator.

"We can see the vaccine inventory starting to loosen up a little bit," Schlyer said. "We got an order in today and out to providers. As people are visiting their doctors, they may have some vaccine available."

The county health department is hoping to offer a regular Monday clinic to provide the flu shots. It remains unclear exactly when that clinic will start, but Schlyer said he hopes it will be in the next few weeks.

For now, the department is finishing its efforts to vaccinate Ellis County students. All elementary schools and middle schools have received the vaccine, and Hays High School will receive its final doses this week.

Students younger than 9 years old will need another dose, and it's hoped the second round of vaccination will begin next week, Schlyer said.

Unlike the seasonal flu vaccination, children and pregnant women were targeted as high-risk populations, with seniors last on the list. Ultimately, the goal is to make the vaccine available to anyone in the county who wants it, he said.

"I just want people to be patient," Schlyer said. "And again ... they need to wash their hands and those kinds of precautions."

The federal government distributes doses of the H1N1 vaccine to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, which then passes allotments to each county based on the population of residents younger than 24 years of age.

That age group is being targeted because it is believed to be most at risk, said Maggie Thompson, a spokesperson for KDHE.

The vaccine is sent to county health departments, which then determine how to distribute the doses locally.

On a state level, KDHE is seeing larger shipments of the vaccine, Thompson said, noting other counties are beginning to offer doses to the general public.

"We are definitely receiving more vaccine, and the numbers are increasing," she said. "It's really up to each community to determine what their needs are at this time."

Hays Medical Center continues to receive small shipments of the vaccine, which is distributed to high-risk individuals. It is hoped, however, the vaccine soon could be made available to the general public, said Rich Matzke, infection control nurse at Hays Med.

"Right now, we're not getting that many doses, so we're still getting high-risk (patients)," Matzke said.

The number of illnesses seems to have tapered off, with the hospital seeing a peak in patient influx about three weeks ago, said Chief Medical Officer Ken Lindsey.

"Hopefully it's kind of come through the community and gone -- we hope," Lindsey said. "We're expecting another wave when the seasonal flu comes through."