VACCINATIONS for 5 – 11 year olds

A REMINDER TO OUR FAMILIES
COVID-19 PAEDIATRIC VACCINE: ROLL-OUT HAS BEGUN FOR CHILDREN AGED 5-11

The vaccination roll out for 5 – 11 year olds in now underway.
We also encourage students from 12 years old who have not as yet received their vaccination to do so.

Families can send any vaccination details to school via our vaccination email address. These are confidential and will be filed in the students Personnel File – vaccination@papint.school.nz

Below is some information that may help families.

Donna Young
Acting Principal

Dr Jin Russell expected some people would be on the fence about the children’s vaccine.

A developmental paediatrician, Dr Jin Russell and a mother to two children said people could be reassured any serious side-effects are incredibly rare.

“I think it’s okay to take your time and make sure you’ve had all your questions answered. It’s important that you have someone that you trust you can speak to about this who can give you good information,” she said.

“I do encourage parents to prepare to have their children vaccinated. We are expecting that some time soon, the Omicron variant is going to burst into New Zealand and that has potential to cause a lot of infections in children.”

That data has recently been examined in an international study, which has challenged the claim Covid-19 is just a mild infection for tamariki and highlighted the benefits of vaccination.

Children have made up 20 percent of the infections in New Zealand’s Delta outbreak, according to numbers from the Ministry of Health, and seven percent of those who required hospital treatment.

There is no obligation for children to get a vaccine – jab or no jab, they’ll be able to attend school when it resumes in two weeks’ time.

However, Auckland Primary Principals’ Association president Stephen Lethbridge warned schools will want to get a sense of uptake among pupils.

Dr Russell encouraged people to talk to their children and answer any questions they have about the vaccine.

She said a sore arm and a bit of tiredness is to be expected, and children should know they’re being brave to protect themselves and their peers.

Read RNZ’s guide on the children’s vaccine – and advice for talking to children – here: