Govt urges parents to allow cervical cancer vaccinations

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A leading sexual health expert says up to 20 per cent of school girls are not getting vaccinated because their parents have not given them permission (file photo). (AAP)

• Related Story: Schoolgirls ‘missing out on cancer vaccine’

Federal Health Minister Tony Abbott is urging parents to vaccinate their daughters against cervical cancer.

A leading sexual health expert says up to 20 per cent of school girls are not getting vaccinated because their parents have not given them permission.

Doctor Edith Weisberg from the Sydney Centre for Reproductive Health Research says parents are worried that the vaccine could promote promiscuity.

But Mr Abbott says it does not, and there is no reason to think that it might.

“I would urge people to get their kids vaccinated,” he said.

“I think this is a very important public health measure.

“I would hate elderly parents to one day have a child with cervical cancer and to have to think that maybe if my child had been vaccinated the result would be different.”

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Flu vaccine dose doubled

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The Federal Health Department says worried parents do not need to seek a flu vaccine boost for their children, despite the recommended dose for toddlers being doubled.

Doctors are now being recommended to provide children under the age of three with a vaccine dose of 0.25 millimetres because it is more practical to administer.

The Department says the change is being made for logistical reasons, not because of any concern about the level of protection.

A spokeswoman says any children who have already been vaccinated are assured of the same effectiveness as the new level of dose, and parents do not need to seek a booster vaccination.

She says the decision has nothing to do with the strength of influenza which has been reported in Australia this winter.

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Compulsory vaccinations in Aged Care

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The Australian Medical Association (AMA) says making vaccinations compulsory among aged care workers could deter people from entering the profession.

The issue was first raised after 10 people died during last year’s influenza outbreak at a nursing home in Canberra.

Last week, three children died after contracting influenza in Western Australia.

The chairman of the AMA Council of General Practice, Rod Pierce, says making vaccinations mandatory could prove problematic.

“If you’re struggling to get someone to look after patients in an aged care facility, you don’t want to make it a confrontation between the union and the workers and employment,” he said.

“I certainly believe and we certainly believe that it’s important for people to have a professional responsibility to actually be vaccinated.”

“It’s the same as washing your hands, it’s the same as doing basic professional things before you actually care for a patient, this falls into the same category.

“It’s not about whether you should or shouldn’t for yourself, it’s about professionally protecting your patient the best you can.”

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What do people think about vaccinations being compulsory to work in Aged Care? Please add your thoughts in the comments area underneath. Thanks. Editor

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