Immunisation and Vaccination Form
Working in early childhood education and care is a high risk occupation for communicable disease – for acquiring or transmitting vaccine-preventable diseases. Early childhood teachers and staff are falling through a vaccination policy gap according to a paper published in the NZ Medical Journal.
The Office of Early Childhood Education (OECE) advises ECE services to develop an Immunisation and Infectious Diseases Policy that is understood by all staff (including relief teachers and student teachers) and communicated well to parents and caregivers.
ECE teachers, educators and managers are role models. So, if you show parents that you personally take children’s health seriously, and let parents know what actions you have taken, this will help make a positive difference.
Print copies of the ECE workforce immunisation and vaccination form to give to everyone who works in your ECE service. The form is a gentle way to raise awareness and prompt workers to consider their vaccination status and become aware of the risks to themselves and children of preventable diseases such as whooping cough and measles.
A 2022 study in the New Zealand Medical Journal showed out of 4000 surveyed ECE workers, only 48% reported being immunised against whooping cough, and 85% reported they were immunised against measles, mumps, and rubella, and believed they had immunity against chickenpox (82%).
It is necessary for all adults who work with children to be given the opportunity to consider their vaccination status and assist their ECE service to meet its health and safety obligations by showing that it has taken reasonable precautions to reduce risk.
Acknowledgements
We are most grateful to the Immunisation Advisory Centre (IMAC) for their opinion and clinical input.
Thank you to our wonderful OECE members who inspired and have helped to inform the development of an “Immunisation and Vaccination Record” form for ECE teaching staff that can be used by all ECE services.
You can print a copy from the file below. Or scroll down to see the download button.
Caution
- the privacy of personal information must be protected.
- unlike for children, there is no legal requirement for staff to provide information on their vaccination status.
The form is designed for employers/services to give to staff to help staff to consider their vaccination status and raise awareness of the benefits of checking their protection.
