Child vaccination schedule: changes, concerns and advice

Uptake of childhood vaccines shows a worrying fall due to several factors, here is a guide for nurses to answer parents’ questions and allay vaccination fears

• Vaccination coverage for young children fell in 2021-22 for virtually all programmes, likely affected by the pandemic
• Reasons for parents not vaccinating their children include concerns and beliefs as well as social or family influence
• Explaining to parents the benefits, backed up by scientific evidence, can provide sufficient reassurance for them to go ahead

New data show vaccination coverage for