In South Africa, vaccines are not compulsory, requiring parent’s consent, but are highly advisable. As a developing country with a mixed social demographic, disease prevention is of critical importance.
Parents often ask “why immunise?” There are three crucial points to that question:
1. Simply put, vaccines stimulate an immune system response and therefore immune memory, by administering a non infectious, harmless fragment of a virus or bacteria into an immature immune system via injection.
2. We develop immunity through either passive or active routes. Babies receive immunity through the placenta and breast milk. We also develop immunity either through having the disease or through exposure to a disease.
3. Disease outbreaks are controlled through “herd immunity”. This is of critical importance in a country like South Africa where many children have poor immune systems due to HIV and poor socio economic backgrounds. By immunising healthy children, grandparents, adults and pregnant women are protected, disease transmission is reduced and vulnerable children who can’t be immunised are protected too.
NOTE: Kids Clinic is accredited with the Department of Health to supply state vaccines
For the government schedule, please see below. These are offered free of charge at State clinics and at some accredited private clinics
http://www.doh.gov.za/docs/publicity/2009/childimmunisation.pdf
For the private schedule, which include vaccines not supplied by the state but only at private
clinics, please see below
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