Tracking down and vaccinating wayward youths at bus stops and skate parks could prove a solution to raising immunisation rates in rural Australia.
The approach has paid off at a high school in rural Queensland, where a drive-by vaccination squad has seen an increase from about 50% to up to 100% of 13-15-year-olds being immunised.
“We’ve had parents contacting us and giving us permission to meet the children at the school bus … and we would have them immunised by the time they return to school,” said Gordon Luck, director of nursing at Mount Morgan Hospital, which runs the mobile service.
The scheme, which won a $15,000 GSK Childhood Immunisation Award last week, set out to vaccinate the 30-odd pupils who missed the school’s vaccination days each year, whether due to truancy or exclusion.
Staff relied on tip-offs to track down the students, resulting in several being vaccinated at the local skate park. Others were taken back to the hospital for their vaccinations.
“If they’ve been excluded from school … [and] are still living in town, then we feel that they deserve to at least have the same opportunity to be disease-free as anybody else,” said Mr Luck.
“If we miss one or two people, as far as we’re concerned it’s not acceptable.”
The vaccination car has been in operation since 2008, and delivers HPV, hepatitis B, varicella and diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis vaccines. It is equipped with adrenaline and resuscitation equipment, and aims to provide the same standard of care as the hospital clinic.
Hospital staff are in regular communication with the school, parents and other local doctors.
Mr Luck planned to spend the prize money on improving vaccination education.
The service was considering booklets styled as comic books, to encourage more adolescents to show up for school vaccination days.
Tracking down and vaccinating wayward youths at bus stops and skate parks could prove a solution to raising immunisation rates in rural Australia.
The approach has paid off at a high school in rural Queensland, where a drive-by vaccination squad has seen an increase from about 50% to up to 100% of 13-15-year-olds being immunised.
“We’ve had parents contacting us and giving us permission to meet the children at the school bus … and we would have them immunised by the time they return to school,” said Gordon Luck, director of nursing at Mount Morgan Hospital, which runs the mobile service.
The scheme, which won a $15,000 GSK Childhood Immunisation Award last week, set out to vaccinate...