As a parent, your child or children’s safety is something that will always be in the forefront of your mind. When they’re babies, it’s easier to control the environment they’re in. It is also easier to prevent infections that may stem from well-meaning handsy aunties and uncles. This goes out the window when your tyke becomes of school going age. Whether you interpret this as kindergarten or even primary school, they are going to be in a public setting where they will be exposed to other people’s germs, viruses and pathogens. Infections that run rampant in schools and kindergartens include hand-foot-mouth disease, influenza and others which can be prevented by keeping up to date with your children’s vaccination schedule.
For the collective good
It is recommended for every child in Malaysia to be vaccinated but compliance is another issue that the Ministry of Health, Malaysia is facing. The Ministry of Health, Malaysia is in charge of maintaining the health of the population of Malaysia and thinks it’s best for those who can be vaccinated, to be vaccinated up to the age of 15 years old for the safety of the population.
Prior to the invention of vaccinations, babies and children regularly succumb to diseases such as diphtheria, measles, polio, whooping cough, rubella, influenza and more! All of these diseases have been nearly eradicated in modern times with many health ministries implementing a vaccination schedule to protect their wards.
One of the main reasons to get your children vaccinated is ‘herd immunity’. When a person is infected with an infectious disease, the infection won’t spread to a vaccinated child and in turn, the vaccinated child can’t spread it to others. This is how disease outbreaks are prevented.
Additionally, there are members of society who cannot receive vaccinations such as people with weak immune systems, pregnant mothers, people undergoing cancer treatments and more. ‘Herd immunity’ helps to protect the vulnerable without needing to isolate them.
There might be a difference depending on whether your child is in government school or private because government schools offers free immunisations to students. Some private schools may offer this and conversely, not all government schools may provide their students with immunisations. Please do check with your children’s school in order to be able to arrange whether you’d like to bring them to the doctor yourself.
If you’re still unsure of the vaccination schedule, here’s a schedule according to the Ministry of Health, Malaysia:
| AGE | VACCINATION |
| Newborn | Bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG) 1st dose: Hepatitis B (HepB) |
| 1 month | 2nd dose: Hepatitis B |
| 2 months | 1st dose: – Diptheria, Tetanus, accellular Pertussis (DTaP) – Haemophilus influenzae b (Hib) – Inactivated Poliovirus (IPV) |
| 3 months | 2nd dose: – DTaP – Hib – IPV |
| 5 months | 3rd dose: – DTP – Hib – IPV |
| 6 months | 3rd dose: Hepatitis B Measles (Sabah only) |
| 10 months | 1st Dose: Japanese Encephalitis (JE) (Sarawak only) |
| 12 months | 1st dose: Mumps, Measles, Rubella (MMR) 2nd dose: Japanese Encephalitis (Sarawak only) |
| 18 months | 4th dose: – DTP – Hib – IPV 3rd dose: JE (Sarawak only) |
| 4 years old | 4th dose: JE (Sarawak only) |
| 7 years old | – BCG (option only if no scar found) – Diptheria, Tetanus (DT booster) – 2nd dose of MMR |
| 13 years old | Human papillomavirus (HPV) with 3 doses within 6 months (2nd dose 1 month after 1st dose, 3rd dose 6 months after 1st dose) |
| 15 years old | Tetanus (TT) |
Source: Immunisation Schedule from the Ministry of Health Malaysia
If you have any doubts about vaccinating your children, know that it’s not just for selfish reasons because there are people in society that require our help to protect their health as well.
References: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); Ministry of Health Malaysia.
