Children’s nursing: how can childhood vaccination uptake improve?
Over the last decade the UK has lost its comfort blanket of 95% herd immunity for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine uptake, with recent figures showing an 88.9% uptake. A recent study showed children born to mothers from several minority ethnic groups had lower vaccination coverage than the white British population. Children’s nurses have a vital role in communities to help unpick hesitancy and work towards the UK gaining herd immunity
Children’s nurses have a vital role in communities to help unpick vaccine hesitancy and work towards herd immunity
With vaccine hesitancy ranking among the top threats to global health, is the NHS doing enough to get the black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) community on board with vaccines?
A recent study showed children born to mothers from several minority ethnic groups had lower vaccination coverage than the white British population across all childhood vaccinations in England.
Sadly, over the last decade the UK has lost its comfort blanket of 95% herd immunity for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine uptake. Figures for 2023-24 show in the UK only 88.9% of children received their first MMR dose.
Without increased childhood vaccination coverage we could be heading towards tragedy
We are heading towards tragedy if we don’t intervene now.
As a children’s nurse and health visitor, my conversations with people from the BAME community about vaccine refusal have been based on lack of information about ingredients, namely gelatine, and the availability of alternatives.
Parents have also questioned why their child needs a vaccine if they are not ill? And why their child needs the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine as Muslims believe there should be no sex before marriage.
‘We need to collaborate with religious organisations and communities to understand hesitancy better and help us advocate for children and families’
Andrew Wakefield’s discredited paper linking the MMR vaccine to autism has been mentioned, but even more common is a medical and general mistrust linked to personal experiences of the healthcare system. This conflicts with the UK Health Security Agency reporting last year that 86% of parents rank the NHS as most trusted on offering vaccine information.
We need to collaborate with religious organisations and communities to understand hesitancy better and help us advocate for children and families. Children’s nurses play a central role in professionals and communities working together to help unpick hesitancy and work towards the UK gaining herd immunity.
Find out more
- The Lancet (2023) Ethnic inequities in routine childhood vaccinations in England 2006–2021: an observational cohort study using electronic health records
- NHS England (2024) Childhood Vaccination Coverage Statistics, England, 2023-24
- World Health Organization (2022) Nearly 40 Million Children are Dangerously Susceptible to Growing Measles Threat
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