Helpful hints from Sheffield Children's: Flu vaccinations this September

 

Welcome to the latest issue of Helpful Hints from the 0-19 Service at Sheffield Children's. This newsletter is written for parents and carers, and provides regular useful information throughout the year. Please help us by sharing it through your school’s network if you can.

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After the summer holidays, Sheffield Children’s School Age Vaccination Service (SAIS) will start to deliver the annual flu vaccination programme in schools across Sheffield.

This programme will run from September through to December. Please take a look at the Sheffield Children’s website to see which date your child’s school will be visited.

How is the flu vaccine given and how does it work?

The children's flu vaccine aims to protect children against the most common types of flu viruses. It usually takes up to 14 days to work.

There's still a chance your child might get flu after getting vaccinated, but they're less likely to be seriously ill or need to go to hospital. Protection from the flu vaccine reduces over time and the types of flu the vaccine protects against are updated each year. This is why it's important to get vaccinated every year.

The children's flu vaccine is usually given as a quick and painless nasal spray in each nostril. This version of the vaccine contains products derived from pigs (porcine gelatine). Children who cannot have the nasal spray can get the vaccine as an injection – which is gelatine-free.

To opt for the injection, complete the consent form and select ‘NO’ on the nasal spray option and you will be given further options to choose. For more information about the flu vaccine, visit NHS.UK

Consent

In preparation for the SAIS visit, you will get an invitation from your child's school to complete a consent form for the vaccine. If you wish to complete the consent form now, please visit sheffieldchildrensvaccinations.co.uk.

The option to consent or decline the vaccination is at the end of the questionnaire so please complete this even if you do not want your child to have the vaccination and inform us of your choice.

You can find your child’s school’s code on the Sheffield Children’s website.

If your child misses their vaccination at school or if they are home-schooled, they should be offered a flu vaccine at a community clinic.

If you would like to contact the SAIS, use the details at the end of this email.

 
Sensory clinics

As well as visiting schools, the SAIS also offers support for children and young people with additional needs, fear of vaccination and anxiety. These clinics are in a quieter, calmer space with much longer appointment slots where young people can be accompanied by a supporting adult.

If you feel these clinics would be useful for your child, please contact the SAIS to discuss your individual requirements. Sensory clinics for the children’s flu vaccine are available on the following Saturdays between 9am and 12pm:

28 September
26 October
30 November
31 December

 

 

We want this newsletter to be as useful as possible. So please let us know your thoughts by completing this very quick survey.

If you need to contact us, please use:

School Age Immunisation Service: 0114 305 3230 or scn-tr.sheffielddutysn.vacandimm@nhs.net
Health Visiting: 0114 305 3224
School Nursing: 0114 305 3284 or scn-tr.sheffielddutysn.schoolnursing@nhs.net

Thank you,
The 0-19 Service at Sheffield Children's

This issue was written by Natalea Wiles from the School Age Immunisation Service