|
Vaccines will improve lives THE Queensland Government will deliver savings to the Queensland health system and improve the lives of Queenslanders by offering free vaccinations to all eligible school students next year, Health Minister Stephen Robertson said.Mr Robertson told the health budget estimates committee Queensland Health will introduce a school-based vaccination programme to protect Queenslanders against several diseases at a cost of $2.5 million a year. He said the initiative would reduce patient workloads in the health system and periods of sick leave for employers. From 2007, unvaccinated grade eight students with parental consent will be immunised for hepatitis B and chicken pox and grade 10 students will receive the diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine. Professor Ian Frazer's breakthrough vaccine against cervical cancer developed in Queensland may also be included in the future depending on national deliberations currently under way. Local councils and other service providers will receive the state funding to conduct the programme at both public and private secondary schools. As a result, around 200,000 students are expected to be vaccinated each year including those in areas of the state that currently do not have access to school programmes. The programme will bring Queensland into line with other states and territories. "For a relatively small investment of $2.5 million a year, the Government will save the community the economic and social burden associated with these diseases," Mr Robertson said. "The current school vaccination programmes are static and, at times, inequitable with little state-wide co-ordination. "Councils involved in school immunisation have done a good job with Queensland Health distributing around 108,000 vaccines in 2005-06 for their secondary school programmes. "However, with this funding we will be able to provide a co-ordinated state-wide school programme so that as many adolescents as possible are vaccinated against these diseases which put an enormous drain on productivity." Last year there were 372 whooping cough cases and 68 hepatitis B cases notified among Queenslanders aged 10 to 19 years. Hundreds of chicken pox cases also occurred. Vaccinations are administered through a range of providers including local government, private GPs and Queensland Health. Children aged less than five years also receive vaccines under the National Immunisation Schedule funded by the Commonwealth and largely administered by States which include measles, mumps, German measles, meningococcal type C, haemophilus influenza type B and others. Mr Robertson said Prof. Frazer's cervical cancer vaccine could possibly be included in the adolescent vaccination schedule in the near future. "The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation is considering Prof. Frazer's Human Papilloma Virus vaccine and will make recommendations to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee including appropriate target groups and costs," he said. "The Committee will then advise on the vaccine's inclusion. "A Queensland Health representative on the National Immunisation Committee will work with the Commonwealth to ensure the recommendations are introduced appropriately in Queensland." School-based programmes are an efficient, cost effective and sustainable method of delivering recommended vaccines to adolescents and preventing diseases in the community. |
About Us | Our Publications | Shopping | Visa Enquiries | Information Days | Links | Advertising | Privacy Policy
© 2005 Consyl Publishing & Publicity Ltd.