This article will help to explain how immunisations work.
Immunisations work by introducing a small dose of the disease to your baby.It’s very difficult when you first take your baby along for immunisations and I don’t think any parent really likes doing that, but it’s important to remember it’s the best thing you can do for your baby to help protect them against a wide range of potentially dangerous infectious diseases.
Immunisations work by introducing a small dose of the disease to your baby. That allows your baby’s immune system to get ready and recognise that disease so that if it ever meets the infection later in life it’s ready to fight against the disease and protect your baby.
It’s quite common for your baby to have a low-grade fever, up to about 38 degrees, in the period following their immunisations.
Doctors often recommend that babies can have a small dose of paracetamol following their immunisations in order to keep their temperature down and help the baby feel comfortable. Don’t give children under 16 asprin unless prescribed by a Doctor.
Make sure they’re not wearing too many layers of clothes or blankets.
Give them plenty to drink.
Be aware that 7-10 days following their injections, babies and little children may develop a low-level rash and sometimes go a bit off their food.
This is normal, but if it’s more than mild or non-blanching, or you are worried, go and see your GP.
(Our lessons show what a non-blanching rash looks like on a real child, which can be fatal and require emergency medical attention.) The footage was kindly provided by the Meningitis Research Foundation.
Here are a few tips that may help your child’s vaccination appointment go smoothly:
Remember to take along your child’s “Red Book” – also know as their personal child health record (PCHR).
Dress them in loose clothes that are easily pushed up . Vaccinations for babies are given their vaccinations in their thighs. Children over 1 year old will have their vaccinations in their arm.
Let your child know what’s going to happen in simple language – for example – “you’ll feel a sharp prick but it will go away very fast”.
Hold them on your knee and have a cuddle before and after – or if you’re a bit anxious you can ask the nurse to hold them for you, or to help you.
Feel free to ask the nurse questions.
There’s been a lot of concern over the last few years particularly around the MMR vaccination and that has led to fewer people taking their children along to have them immunised. The research that initially caused the concern has been discredited.
Unfortunately, in the last decade, there has been an increase in the numbers of children suffering from measles. Our on-screen consultant paediatrician, Dr. Anna Maw, has sadly had to treat a child hospitalised with measles who was actually very sick indeed. Measles is potentially quite serious and can have long-term complications for a baby’s health.
For more information about the MMR immunisation, please look at our lesson from the toddler stage that goes into the evidence for the safety of the MMR vaccine in a number of big studies (including studies looking particularly at ‘high risk’ children e.g., the siblings of children with a diagnosis of ASD or autism spectrum disorders). The article also covers some of the problems with the unethical and flawed researched initially published by Andrew Wakefield who lost his medical licence over the problems with the research.
For advice from the Institute of Health Visiting about childhood immunisations, click here.
