NSW Health is reminding parents and carers to vaccinate their children on-time according to the National Immunisation Program Schedule.
Director of the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance, Professor Kristine Macartney said each dose of vaccine given to babies and children was carefully chosen to provide them with the earliest protection against preventable diseases.
“It’s really important that we ensure protection on-time against the most serious diseases,” Professor Macartney said.
“On-time vaccinations can also help protect those more vulnerable people in the community,” she said.
“It’s ok to leave your house to get vaccinated, unless you or your child have been directed to self-isolate.”
Professor Macartney said children could still be vaccinated if they had a runny nose or slight cold.
“Delaying vaccinations can leave children exposed to serious illnesses at a time when they’re most vulnerable,” she said.
She said all children aged six months to five years were also recommended to have their free annual influenza vaccination, available from mid-April.
Professor Macartney said that on-time vaccination and overall participation in childhood immunisation programs continued to improve in NSW, with 94.7 per cent of children fully vaccinated by five years of age in the past 12 months compared with 90.8 per cent in 2012.
