Anton McNulty
The uptake of the six-in-one vaccination for children in Mayo at 24 months of age is in line with the national average, but those receiving their final doses of the PCV, Men C and MMR vaccines are below the national average.
The 2010 statistics were revealed by the HSE National Immunisation Office which launched a new guide to childhood immunisation for parents. Children should be seen five times by their GP for immunisation in the first 13 months of life to be fully protected.
The guide has been produced as a response to the drop in the reported number of children receiving their Hib booster, as well as their third doses of PCV and Men C vaccines, which they receive at 12 and 13 months of age.
The national average of children aged 24 months who are protected against diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough and polio is at 94 per cent with figures for Mayo showing that the uptake of these vaccines are in line with national average.
However, the data also reveals that the uptake of the vaccines PCV, Men C and MMR in Mayo are below the national average for children aged 24 months. The national average for the uptake of PCV, Men C and MMR is at 88, 86 and 90 per cent respectively while in Mayo the uptake is at 84, 82 and 86 per cent respectively.
The PCV vaccine protects against pneumococcal infections such as pneumococcal meningitis and septicaemia, while Men C protects against Meningococcal meningitis and the MMR vaccine protects against measles, mumps and rubella.
Immunisation uptake rates in Ireland have improved over recent years but are still short of the World Health Organization target of 95 per cent. Dr Diarmuid O’Donovan, Director of Public Health, HSE West said it was very important for parents to bring their child to their GP in the first 13 months of their life to prevent diseases.
“The guide aims to remind parents that five visits to a GP are necessary in the first 13 months of a child’s life to ensure that they are fully protected against a range of serious, but preventable, diseases.
“Uptake rates for MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine have reached 90 per cent, although this is still not sufficient to prevent measles outbreaks. We have seen a number of measles outbreaks in Ireland in recent years, which could have been prevented if enough children had received the MMR vaccine.
“Immunisation is a simple, safe and effective way of protecting children against certain diseases. Vaccines have saved more lives worldwide than any other public health intervention other than the provision of clean water,” he said
A series of information materials, including posters, fridge magnets, and ‘immunisation passports’ for parents to keep records of what vaccines their children have received have been produced by the HSE. These will be available from public health nurses when they visit parents of newborn babies for the first time, and from www.healthpromotion.ie from May 2011.
