Vaccine advice for parents

As a parent, it can be very difficult to make an informed decision about what vaccines to give your child.

Currently, the recommendation in the UK via the NHS Vaccination Schedule is to vaccinate against 13 diseases by the time a child is 12 months old. However, you may have some questions or concerns about this schedule.

Many parents come to us because they:

• Wish to spread the vaccines over a longer period of time
• Want to leave out some vaccines that they consider less essential
• Wish to give their child a vaccine that is not yet offered on the NHS or not easily available in this country
• Want to follow the NHS schedule but need an appointment at a certain time due to upcoming travel
• Are travelling or have relocated from another country and are following an alternative vaccination schedule

These are all valid concerns and we believe it’s important that you have access to as much choice and information as possible within the context of what would be right for your child.

Having decided what vaccines to give, the next decision is when to give them.

For some illnesses, you might want to vaccinate as early as possible because younger infants are in a high-risk group for developing more serious complications.

It can make sense to delay immunising for some other illnesses though to allow your baby’s immune system to mature and possibly reduce their risk of developing allergic diseases such as asthma.

People often talk about vaccinations in a polarised way (whether pro- or anti-vax) but actually this is a much more nuanced issue with shades of grey rather than black or white. Decisions usually revolve around balancing risks – the risk from vaccination compared with the risk of a particular disease – taking into account your child’s unique situation.

Making an informed choice is not easy, especially with so much disinformation abounding on both sides of the debate. We are here to help you make sense of it all and to make decisions with which you feel comfortable.

Booking a consultation with a BabyJabs clinician gives you an opportunity to talk through the vaccine issues that are important to you and have your questions answered. We can then agree on an individualised immunisation plan for your child.

Before we can give your child any vaccinations, you will need to have a consultation. This is because vaccines are prescription-only medications and require a doctor or nurse prescriber to prescribe them before a nurse can administer them. The consultation also ensures that, as a parent, you are fully informed about the risks and benefits of using alternative vaccine schedules.

Consultations are a 30-minute appointment, which gives ample time to discuss a vaccination schedule. Consultations are offered by phone or video call.