URBANA — Director Jeff Walkington announced today that the McKinley Health Center will give the H1N1 vaccine at Uni beginning 8:30 a.m. Monday. The vaccinations will most likely take place in Uni Gym.

According to Walkington, the only form of vaccine available is the live intranasal form. In a letter to parents, he explained that the form "is not safe for certain students with compromised immune systems or severe allergies to eggs or other substances in the vaccine."

He advised parents to contact their health-care provider if they are not sure their children should receive the vaccine. Parents must give their permission before a student is vaccinated.

"An additional concern with the live form of the vaccine is that children with severely weakened immune systems (such as children who have had recent bone marrow transplants) should be kept away for four days or more from children who have had the live vaccine," Walkington said in his letter.

"In this situation, a child who lives with a severely weakened person in the household should not have the live vaccine. A child who has a severely weakened immune system should not attend school next week so as to avoid being near other students who have had the live vaccine."

He again advised parents to consult with their health-care provider to determine whether their children should forgo the vaccination or miss school next week.

The vaccinations will be given just as Uni recovers from a major spike in student absences due to illness. According to figures provided by the main office, here are the daily student absences since Oct. 19:

Week of Oct. 19-23

• Monday: 21 students (6.8 percent of student body)
• Tuesday: 36 students (11.6 percent)
• Wednesday: 47 students (15.1 percent)
• Thursday: 91 students (29.3 percent)
• Friday: 120 students (38.6 percent)

Week of Oct. 26-30

• Monday: 75 students (24.1 percent)
• Tuesday: 40 students (12.9 percent)
• Wednesday: 23 students (7.4 percent)
• Thursday: 6 students (1.9 percent)

As the figures show, the number of absent students peaked at 120 on Friday — more than one-third of the student body — and has declined every school day since then.

As of late this morning, only six students were reported absent, which is about average for Uni. The school has 311 students this year, according to the Student Services Office.