IQALUIT - Nunavut is one of three jurisdictions in Canada that will not immediately go ahead with the second dose of H1N1 vaccine for children, according to chief medical officer Dr. Isaac Sobel, who made the announcement in a press conference Nov. 18.

Nunavut Health Minister Tagak Curley speaking at a press conference on the H1N1 vaccination program in Nunavut. - Erika Sherk/NNSL photo

The public health agency of Canada put out dosage guidelines for children last week, recommending those aged six months to three years receive a second half-dose of the vaccine, Sobel said.

However, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories and Quebec have all decided "to wait until we receive further evidence before deciding to give a second dose of H1N1 vaccine to that age group," Sobel said.

The recommendation may change as new information is available, he said.

"We're asking the public to hang on, we don't want to make a precipitous call here," the chief medical officer said.

It was originally thought that adults would need a second dose, Sobel said, but evidence soon showed that only one was necessary. The number of children vaccinated is much smaller.

"The evidence that we've seen to date shows really high levels of protection for kids in that age group who have just received one half-dose, and if we can avoid having to give a second needle to children and still have them protected that's still the best route to take," Sobel said.

The health department should know by the end of the month whether or not children will need the second half-dose, Sobel said, and vaccinations would likely start Dec. 6.

The mass H1N1 vaccinations from Nov. 1 to Nov. 16 saw 18,724 people get the H1N1 shot - 60 per cent of the population - according to Health Minister Tagak Curley.

Only "half a dozen" people reported adverse reactions, said Sobel.

"Flu teams will be revisiting any communities where the uptake was on the low side," said Curley. Coral Harbour reported the lowest percentage of vaccinations, with only 29 per cent receiving the needle. Rumours based on misinformation circulated on the Internet had an effect in some communities, Sobel said.

Wanting to see what people were accessing, Curley Googled H1N1 and found "really outrageous claims made, that it is a government plot, that there are microchips put in the vaccine with the number 666 which will enable you to be tracked by the government," he said.

"In an Internet world where there's no way to determine what's valid and what isn't valid, if you read something like that you can get really scared," he said.

Both Sobel and Curley said they were pleased with the success rate of the mass vaccination program, where teams of nurses travelled to each community in the territory.

Canada is reporting an overall rate of about 20 per cent vaccinated and the NWT is reporting about 50 per cent, said Sobel.

About 16,000 nunavummiut were vaccinated against the regular seasonal flu as well, said Curley, nearly double the number vaccinated in 2008.

Nunavut has avoided a second wave of the virus, Sobel said, with "less than a handful" of H1N1 cases since September, though he would not give an exact number.