Health protection in young children
During 2022/23 child immunisation rates across Rochdale borough were generally better than the national average according to NHS England.
What is health protection?
Health protection refers to actions we might take to protect ourselves and our children from major health problems such as diseases and infections. We achieve health protection from vaccinations, antibiotics, screenings and monitoring outbreaks of disease.
Childhood immunisations
The NHS offers everyone many different vaccinations to help protect them from infectious diseases. The NHS usually gives the injections during childhood, in particular during the first few months and years of life.
Common vaccinations given to young children include:
- Diphtheria
- Tetanus
- Whooping cough
- Polio
- Hepatitis B
- Haemophilus influenza type b
- Pneumococcal
- Rotavirus
- Meningitis types B and C
- Measles, mumps and rubella
- Children’s flu
- 4-in-1 pre-school booster
Statistics on health protection
- Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) - Health protection profile - the health protection profile covers a range of health protection issues, with information on various infections but also interventions to reduce infection such as immunisation. The profile includes a section on immunisation and childhood vaccines for preventable diseases.
- Cover Of Vaccination Evaluated Rapidly (COVER) programme (aged 0-5) - UK quarterly data and commentary on coverage achieved by the UK childhood immunisation programme.
Guidance and information on health protection
- Public Health England (PHE) - Giving every child the best start in life guidance - Public Health England produced this guidance aimed at increasing the proportion of children who are ready to learn at 2 and ready for school at age 5. It includes information on protecting health in infancy.
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) immunisation guidance - NICE have produced a number of guidance documents on immunisations including topics on reducing differences in uptake in under 19s, a pathway of recommendations for immunisations and shared learning examples of community engagement to increase childhood immunisations.
- NHS Choices on vaccination- The NHS Choices website includes a checklist of vaccinations that are routinely offered for free on the NHS.