Immunisation
Indicator Rationale
For more than 200 years, the use of vaccines has continued to reduce the burden of many bacterial and viral diseases. For example, as a result of successful vaccination programs, deaths from tetanus, diphtheria, Haemophilus influenzae type b and measles are now extremely rare in Australia. Vaccination not only protects individuals, but also others in the community, by increasing the general level of immunity and minimising the spread of infection. It is vital that health-care professionals take every available opportunity to vaccinate children and adults. It is also important that the public be made aware of the proven effectiveness of immunisation to save lives and prevent serious illness.
Proper and timely immunisation effectively protects children from a host of debilitating and sometimes deadly childhood diseases and is most effective when a high proportion of the population has been immunised. Immunisation has been repeatedly demonstrated in both research trials and in the field to be one of the most effective medical interventions we have to prevent disease. It has been estimated that immunisations currently save 3 million lives per year throughout the world while remaining one of the most cost effective health interventions. Modern vaccines provide high levels of protection against several diseases, and protection against consequent disability and death.
Data Source
Medicare Australia, Australian Childhood Immunisation Register
Measure
Children Fully Immunised at 12-15 Months of Age: expressed as a percentage of children aged 12-15 months at the end of the previous quarter.
Data are not provided for Benalla (RC) and Mansfield (S). Data are provided for total Victoria, but not with regional or metropolitan/country breakdowns.
References
Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, Communicable Diseases Intelligence
