Allen County Health Commissioner Dr. Deborah McMahan announces an hour-long TV special on the H1N1 flu virus in Fort Wayne.  Behind her are (left) Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry and (right) County Commissioner Nelson Peters

On Monday, Oct. 5 at 7 p.m., the local Fort Wayne television stations will simulcast H1N1: Community on Alert, an hour-long special devoted to the flu pandemic. 

The Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health and its community partners announced the live broadcast today. The program will be produced by WFWA PBS 39 and air simultaneously on WANE-TV NewsChannel 15, WPTA 21Alive, WISE 33, FOX Fort Wayne and Access One Comcast 55, Verizon 25.

“We know people have a lot of questions about this new flu virus and the vaccine which has recently been approved,” said Dr. Deborah McMahan, Allen County Health Commissioner. “That’s why we are extremely grateful to our broadcast partners for giving us this opportunity to share this important public health information with such a broad audience.”

Community on Alert will feature interview segments with experts who will address various aspects of the H1N1 flu virus, including symptoms, vaccine availability, school and work issues, and when to stay home. Special segments will focus on families affected by the H1N1 flu virus and the priority groups for early vaccination. Viewers will also be able to call in during the broadcast to ask questions of health professionals.

To make the broadcast accessible to all members of the community, the health department is working with the Multicultural Council of Fort Wayne and the Fort Wayne Police Department’s Hispanic Liaison office to set up viewing sites at locations throughout the city. Each site will provide language interpreters or other special assistance as needed.

•St. Patrick’s Parish, 2120 S. Harrison St. (Spanish interpretation)
•St. Joseph Catholic Church, 2213 Brooklyn Ave. (Spanish interpretation)
•St. Henry’s Community Center, 2929 E. Paulding Road (Burmese interpretation)
•Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, Walb Student Union, 2101 Coliseum Blvd. E.
•Ivy Tech Community College, 3800 N. Anthony Blvd.
•AISEDA (African Immigrants Social and Economic Development Agency, Inc.), 3326 S. Calhoun St.
•Anthis Career Center, 1200 S. Barr St.
•AIDS Task Force, 525 Oxford St.
•League for the Blind and Disabled, 5821 S. Anthony Blvd. (Sign language interpretation)

For more information on flu prevention efforts, visit www.fighttheflu.org or dial 2-1-1 United Way of Allen County.