The Nambucca, part of the North Coast Primary Health Network (PHN), is still falling behind the national rate of immunisation of five-year-olds.
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While the area has improved dramatically over the past six years (84.6 percent in 2011, to 90.6 percent in 2017), we are still a few percentage points below the 93.5 percent Australia-wide rate.
Nationally, more children are fully immunised by the time they are five-years-old than in the past; however, variations are still seen across local areas, according to new data released today by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).
The data shows that 93.5 percent of Australian 5 year olds were fully immunised in 2016–17. This is up from 92.9 percent in 2015–16 and 90 percent in 2011–12, but still below the national target of 95 percent.
The data shows variation across Australia’s 31 PHN areas.
PHNs are organisations that connect health services over local geographic areas.
The proportion of fully immunised five-year-olds was highest in Western NSW at 96.0 percent, while North Coast (NSW), and Perth North have the lowest rates at 90.6%.
“The greatest improvement was seen in the Central Queensland, Wide Bay and Sunshine Coast PHN area, which rose from 91.6 percent in 2015–16 to 93.3 percent in 2016–17,” AIHW spokesperson Tracy Dixon said.
Detailed immunisation results for 1, 2 and 5 year olds at three levels of geography, plus results for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, are available at https://www.myhealthycommunities.gov.au/.
“Despite the majority of Australian children being immunised, it’s important that we don’t become complacent. We need to maintain high immunisation rates to protect the vulnerable groups in our community,” Ms Dixon said.
Updated information on immunisation against human papillomavirus (HPV) is also available today on the MyHealthyCommunities website.
The web update shows that in 2015–16, 80.1 percent of girls aged 15, and 74.1 percent of boys aged 15, were fully immunised against HPV.
“HPV immunisation rates for girls varied across PHN areas, ranging from 85.6 percent of girls fully immunised in Central and Eastern Sydney to 69.2 percent in Tasmania,” Ms Dixon said.
“The greatest improvements in HPV immunisation rates in girls was seen in Perth North rising from 70.2 percent in 2014–15 to 77.2 percent in 2015–16.
For boys, rates ranged from 83.5 percent in Murrumbidgee (NSW) to 62.5 percent in Tasmania.
The National HPV Vaccination Program has been immunising adolescent girls since 2007 and was extended to boys in 2013.