SUMMIT COUNTY — Summit County Public Health will have a small cache of swine flu vaccine later this week, starting with the nasal mist.

“We'll start to distribute it in the community the following week,” said public health director Deb Crook, adding that she's not sure if it will arrive on Thursday or Friday of this week. “It's a little up in the air.”

The mist will be distributed to health care workers who have direct patient contact first, such as emergency room staff. The mist is for healthy people ages 2 to 49, Crook said, noting that not everyone will be able to take it due to those limitations.

Crook explained that if front-line hospital workers were to become ill, it could cause hospital functions to be in jeopardy.

Though the amount of swine flu vaccines will be very small initially, a mix of mist and vaccine will arrive regularly as the month progresses.

Crook said she hopes that by the end of October, all the high-risk groups in Summit County will be vaccinated, though this is dependent on many variables.

“We're going to move it through as best we can,” she said.

The community will be notified by public health when certain groups of people are eligible for the vaccine, and if so, where they can get it.

Caitlin Row can be reached at (970) 668-4633 or at crow@summitdaily.com.