Immunisation can be a worry...

Common questions parents ask about childhood immunisation

What is immunisation?

Immunisation is a simple way to protect your child against a wide range of infectious diseases. It is carried out by giving your child a vaccine, usually by injection. Childhood vaccines stimulate the body to produce an immune response to fight the disease.

What are the benefits to my child?

Immunisation is the most effective way to prevent diseases such as measles, diphtheria and meningitis. If your child is not immunised, they are at risk of catching these diseases, which can cause serious illness or even death.

What are the risks?

Some children develop a raised temperature or become “grizzly” after being immunised. The risk of side effects is much smaller than the risk of the illness to which your child could be exposed without immunisation. If a fever occurs, make sure your child has plenty of cool drinks and give them paracetamol or ibuprofen liquid.

What is the immunisation schedule?

Doctors in the UK recommend a series of vaccinations carried out at intervals throughout childhood (see the table). Your GP or Health Visitor should remind you when the next one is due. Different vaccines are sometimes combined in one injection to reduce the number of injections required.

Where can I find out more?

For further advice, ask your GP or Practice Nurse. Alternatively, take a look at the online advice provided by the NHS (Immunisation Information and MMR The facts):

www.immunisation.nhs.uk

www.mmrthefacts.nhs.uk

...but it needn’t cause pain

EMLA Cream is a local anaesthetic cream that can be applied to the skin to suppress the pain of injections. It is available from pharmacies only.

Just apply EMLA Cream under a dressing to the area of skin to be injected about an hour before your child is due to be immunised.

Ask your Pharmacist about EMLA Cream before you take your child for immunisation. Click here if you would like to download an EMLA Parent’s Guide.

EMLA Cream
Hate Needles. Love EMLA.

What are your views on immunisation?

Would you like to participate in a survey of parent's attitudes to immunisation? Your views are important as they will help us to tailor our advice and services to parents' needs. The survey will only take a few minutes to complete, and to thank you for taking part we will send a Complimentary Teddy Bear Bean Toy.

Your responses will not be identifiable and we will not contact you without your permission.

Click here to enter the Immunisation Survey.

This section is sponsored by AstraZeneca