Student Center for Health & Counseling
Cedar Hall, first floor
Phone: (218) 755-2053
(218) 755-2024
Fax: (218) 755-2750
Mailing Address:
1500 Birchmont Dr. NE #42
Bemidji, MN 56601-2907
State law requires that certain immunization information be on file in our clinic. This state mandate requires students to have documentation of up-to-date immunization against tetanus/diphtheria (Td) and measles/mumps/rubella (MMR), with the exception of students who graduated from a Minnesota high school in 1997 or later. Please submit the required form to the Student Center for Health and Counseling. The form is available in your orientation booklet or here for download.
Minnesota law requires all post-secondary educational institutions to provide students with information about transmission, treatment, and prevention of hepatitis A, B, and C.
The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends that college students, particularly freshmen living in dormitories and residence halls, be educated about meningitis and the benefits of vaccination. Recent studies show that college students, particularly freshmen living in dormitories, have a sixfold increased risk for meningitis. Information about the disease and vaccination is important for all undergraduate students who also wish to reduce their risk for the disease.
Meningitis is rare. However, when it strikes, its flu-like symptoms make diagnosis difficult. If not treated early, meningitis can lead to swelling of the fluid surrounding the brain and spinal column as well as severe and permanent disabilities, such as hearing loss, brain damage, seizures, limb amputation and even death.
Cases of meningitis among teens and young adults 15 to 24 years of age have more than doubled since 1991. The disease strikes about 3,000 Americans each year and claims about 300 lives. Between 100 and 125 meningitis cases occur on college campuses and as many as 15 students will die from the disease.
A vaccine is available that protects against four types of the bacteria that cause meningitis in the United States - types A, C, Y and W-135. These types account for nearly two thirds of meningitis among college students. The vaccine is available and can be requested at any time at the SCHC.
In order to avoid lengthy illness, currently flu vaccine is recommended for anyone who cannot afford to be incapacitated for a week to 10 days. Also, illness spreads rapidly in a college setting because groups of people gather in classroom or dormitory settings. Students with any chronic illness especially should be vaccinated.
The typhoid vaccine is recommended for persons traveling to areas where there is a recognized risk of exposure to S. Typhi. Immunization is recommended two weeks prior to travel. The vaccine is contraindicated in anyone with a history of prior sensitivity to it. Acute infection or fever may be a reason for delaying vaccination. Adverse reactions may include only mild soreness and redness at the injection site. In clinical trials no severe or unusual side effects have been observed.
The IPOL is recommended for persons traveling to regions or countries where poliomyelitis is endemic or epidemic. Immunization prevents poliomyelitis caused by poliovirus Types 1, 2 and 3. IPOL is an inactivated vaccine and therefore cannot cause polio. This vaccine is contraindicated in persons with a history of hypersensitivity to any component of the vaccine, including Neomycin, Streptomycin and Polymixin B. Vaccination should be delayed in persons with an acute illness or fever. Minor illnesses such as upper respiratory infection with or without low grade fever, are not reasons for postponing vaccination. Adverse reactions include only mild soreness at the injection site. Although no causal relationship between IPOL and Guillain-Barre' Syndrome (GBS), a neurological or nervous system disease, has been established, GBS has been temporally associated with the administration of another inactivated polio vaccine. There are no known interactions of IPOL with drugs or food.