Adolescent school-based vaccination in Australia.

Adolescent school-based vaccination in Australia. Commun Dis Intell Q Rep. 2013 Jun;37(2):E156-67 Authors: Ward K, Quinn H, Bachelor M, Bryant V, Campbell-Lloyd S, Newbound A, Scully M, Webby R, McIntyre PB Abstract Adolescents have become an increasingly prominent target group for vaccination in Australia and other developed countries. Over the past decade, voluntary school-based vaccination programs have evolved to become the primary method of delivering adolescent vaccines funded under Australia's National Immunisation Program (NIP). These programs operate at a state and territory level and offer NIP vaccines to adolescents in specific school grades using local teams of trained vaccine providers. This paper summarises the current operation of voluntary school-based vaccination programs in Australia. Information was obtained through a literature review, semi-structured interviews with those managing and implementing school-based vaccination programs in each jurisdiction and a review of program resources. Available coverage data was obtained from each state or territory. Vaccines are delivered at the school, during school hours, and typically target late primary or early secondary school grades. Written parental consent is required for any vaccine to be administered. Operation of the programs is influenced by various factors at the school and provider level. Despite variability in program implementation, collection and analysis of c...
Source: Communicable Diseases Intelligence Quarterly Report - Category: Infectious Diseases Tags: Commun Dis Intell Q Rep Source Type: research