[Report 1968] / Medical Officer of Health, Dudley County Borough.

  • Dudley (England). County Borough Council.
Date:
1968
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1968] / Medical Officer of Health, Dudley County Borough. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    VACCINATION AND IMMUNISATION In March Local Health Authorities were asked to make arrangements under the provisions of Section 26 of the National Health Service Act, 1946 for vaccination against measles to be offered to susceptible children. The Joint Committee on Vaccina- tion and Immunisation had advised the Minister that vaccination against measles should be offered to all children up to and including the age of 15 years who were susceptible to an attack of measles because they had neither been immunised nor had natural measles. At the outset the amount of vaccine available was not enough to meet all demands and It was necessary therefore, to phase the programme so that vaccination was initially offered to susceptible children who were between their 4th and 7th birthdays and to children attending day nurseries and nursery schools or residential establishments who were between their 1st and 7th birthdays. Immunisation is best given by means of one injection of live attenuated measles virus vaccine. For routine immunisation in early childhood it was recommended that the vaccine should be given in the second year of life after the basic course of immunisation against diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough and poliomyelitis and preferably before routine vaccination against smallpox. In making these arrangements Local Authorities were also asked to invite General Practitioners to participate. In December 1967 the Chief Medical Officer of the Ministry of Health Informed Local Authorities that the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation had reviewed the existing schedules of Immunisation in childhood and recommended that these should be replaced by a single schedule. A circular giving further details was received In September and as a result the following schedule of Immunisation was adopted within the Department:— Age 3 months Age 4^ months Age 9 to 10 months Age 12 months Age 15 months Age 5 years Age 12 years Age 15 years or on leaving school — First triple, first polio — Second triple, second polio — Third triple, third polio — Measles — Smallpox vaccination — Dip/Tet. booster, polio booster and re-vaccination — B.C.G. vaccination — Tet.Toxoid booster, polio booster and smallpox re-vaccination The scheme for vaccination and immunisation by appointment at clinics, introduced during 1967, has continued with very satisfactory results. An analysis of the immunisation state of all children born in 1967, who were living in the County Borough in December, 1968 shows that 82% (78%) had been protected against Diphtheria, 80% (76%) against Whooping Cough, 82% against Tetanus and 81% (74%) against Poliomyelitis. In addition 57% (38%) had been protected against Smallpox and 38% against Measles. The National figures are given in brackets.