Residents in for the long haul at Metro Hall flu clinic.
Torontonians wait their turn at the Metro Hall H1N1 clinic.
Staff photo/DAVID NICKLE
Tanya Kirsch had her day at Metro Hall all planned out. The Bloor West Village mother of five-year-old Danny and two-year-old Laura came to the H1N1 vaccination clinic here at 7 a.m. with children and a stroller full of snacks and activities in tow. She was under no illusions the wait to get vaccinations for herself and her children would be a quick one."Staying in one spot is not always easy," she said, as Danny and Laura engrossed themselves with colouring books on the slate floor of Metro Hall's rotunda, "so the thing is to bring as many snacks as possible, and as many activities as possible. You need variety. So when they start behaving badly, you throw a snack at them. And they have to be interesting snacks - carrot sticks just won't do."The clinic was just opening when Kirsch spoke with Toronto Community News, shortly after 10 a.m. Friday, Oct. 30. It was one of a number of clinics open across the city to distribute vaccinations - to people in higher risk groups, namely pregnant women, young children and people with underlying health conditions that might make them more susceptible to the worst of the new strain of influenza.According to Toronto Public Health spokesperson Anne-Marie Aikins, the clinic got off to a late start because the 2,100 doses of the vaccine were stuck in morning rush hour traffic. But the clinic, which was to have closed at 4 p.m., will stay open late to make sure all the vaccinations are distributed. And on Friday, the health department helped bring some order to the long wait by handing out numbers, so that not everyone who showed up later needed to wait in line.Aikins said the process is much more effective now than it was Thursday, when a clinic at the North York Civic Centre had to close because of the press of people wanting their vaccinations."I find that people are very kind and understanding and patient today," said Aikins. "They came prepared with chairs, laptops and movies. They came very prepared and very understanding."Amy Prencham, a north Toronto resident who is expecting a child, was philosophical about the wait."There are people who've been here since four a.m.," she said. "It's still a very long wait and there's not much you can do about it."