Vaccines work!

CELEBRATED in the last week of April, World Immunisation Week, which ended yesterday, aimed to promote the use of vaccines to protect people of all ages against disease. Immunisation saves millions of lives every year and is widely recognised as one of the world’s most successful and cost-effective health interventions. Yet, there are still nearly 20 million unvaccinated and under-vaccinated children in the world today, says the World Health Organization.

The theme of this year’s campaign was Protected Together: Vaccines Work! and Minister of Health Dr Christopher Tufton has said that immunisation is one of the most successful and cost-effective health interventions, which saves the lives of some three million children in the Americas each year.

“Immunisation has led to a substantial reduction of illnesses and death from diseases such as polio, measles, whooping cough, rubella and newborn tetanus,” Dr Tufton stated.

He said that Jamaica’s immunisation programme has managed to eliminate a number of vaccine-preventable diseases. These include poliomyelitis (polio) in 1982; measles in 1991; rubella, 2000 and the last case of newborn tetanus was recorded in 2001.

Parents and guardians are being reminded to adhere to the schedule outlining clinic appointments for the vaccination of their children.

The Immunisation Regulations of 1986, which were amended in 2013, as well as the adolescent and adult vaccination policies, stipulate that all children under seven years of age must be adequately immunised prior to school entry.

This applies to children entering day care, nursery, preschool, basic school and primary school, whether publicly or privately operated.

Immunisations mandated by law for children prior to school entry are:

1. At birth, the BCG vaccine for protection against severe forms of tuberculosis

2. At six weeks, three and six months old, polio; and pentavalent vaccine for protection against diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), tetanus (lock jaw), haemophilus influenza type B, and hepatitis B.

3. Others are at 12 and 18 months old, the MMR for protection against measles, mumps and rubella

4. Booster doses for polio, diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus are given at 18 months old and four to six years old to complete the schedule.

The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination for protection against cervical cancer is now being offered to grade seven girls as part of the national immunisation schedule.

Is your child fully immunised?

Note that no child will be allowed in school unless he or she is immunised against:

1. Tuberculosis (TB)

2. Diphtheria

3. Tetanus (lock jaw)

4. Poliomyelitis

5. Mumps

6. Measles

7. Rubella (German measles)

8. Pertussis (Whooping cough)

9. Haemophilus Influenza B

10. Hepatitis B.