Are back-to-school vaccinations on your end of the summer to-do-list? If not, they should be. Regardless of what grade your child is going into, there are required immunizations they must receive or have listed on their medical records. The requirements and recommendations are in alignment with the routine vaccination schedules from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.
For the 2015-2016 school year, all students entering kindergarten and first grade are required to have a record documenting two valid doses of Hepatitis A vaccine. Two Varicella vaccines must be on record for any students grades K-12. Students in grades 6 through 12 must have one Tdap vaccine on record. Students entering 12th grade must have a record of two doses of the Meningococcal/meningitis vaccine. For a complete listing of Indiana school immunization requirements, visit the Indiana State Department of Health website.
Though it is not a required vaccination, parents should talk with their doctors about the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. Each year HPV cause more than 26,000 new cases of cancer in both men and women. HPV is spread by skin-to-skin sexual contact. Infection with the virus can lead to cervical cancer in women and can also cause other oral and genital cancers in men and women. All boys and girls ages 11 to 26 are recommended to receive the vaccine which is given in three doses over a six month span.
Hoosiers can access their immunization records through MyVaxIndiana, a user-friendly website that allows parents and other individuals to connect with their immunization records from any computer through the use of a personal identification number. PINs can be obtained fro health-care providers and used to log in to the secure website where users can access their records.
