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What are the vaccination rates against other diseases in Squamish schools?

One school reported 29 per cent of their kindergarten students had no vaccinations at all
Vaccination

Since the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority announced a possible measles exposure in Squamish on Feb. 22, the Squamish Waldorf School says it welcomes a mandatory reporting of vaccinations in B.C.

B.C.’s health minister said last week the government is looking to make reporting a child’s vaccination records mandatory.

“If there’s a mandatory reporting, then we just know we have all the information at our fingertips. It’s just more transparent because if we’re in a state where there was an outbreak, we already have to go through all of our records,” Gabriel Hull, the principal of Squamish Waldorf School, told The Chief on Tuesday, March 5.

“Making sure we’ve got really accurate records and we know what’s going on, we’re on the same page with the other agencies, is just going to make our management of the situation much simpler.”

 When news of the measles outbreak broke in February, Squamish Waldorf School kindergarten students had the lowest reported rate of measles immunizations in Squamish. VCH reported 33 per cent of Squamish Waldorf kindergarten students were vaccinated against the measles in the 2017-2018 school year, the latest available data from the health authority. In the same school year, other Squamish schools ranged from 43 to 93 per cent.

“Thirty-three per cent is based on the number of people they’ve contacted,” Hull said. “Likewise, if they’ve gotten their first measles shot, they may be 96 per cent immune to measles, but if they don’t get their second immunization shot, they still count it in the system as not vaccinated. There’s a number of ways that the statistics the health unit collects may not be completely accurate of the actual sample of students they’re taking. Then also with small schools, it’s easier to have a reporting error because one or two students can really make a huge change in a percentage.”

Since then, Squamish Waldorf told The Chief its preschool immunization rate is nearly 77 per cent, so they expect their other vaccination rates could be similar. Unlike elementary schools, middle schools and high schools in the province, vaccination reports are mandatory for preschools.

“We’re going to be working a little bit more closely with the health unit,” she said. “We’ve been speaking with them to see how we can better ease communication between parents and the health unit, and if we can help with some of the follow-ups. I think it’s in everybody’s best interest.”

Currently, the numbers recorded by the Vancouver Coastal Health authority are based on vaccination records provided by parents. Since reporting a child’s immunization status is not yet mandatory in B.C., the percentage could be different than what is reported. VCH recommends treating the reported rate as a minimum.

Zero immunizations

Each age group has a vaccination category called ‘Zero,’ which shows the percentage of students who are reported to not have been immunized at all, against anything. If a school has five or fewer students who have no immunizations, the rate is not included in VCH reports. Most Squamish schools qualified under this exclusion.

For kindergarten students, only one school recorded or provided its zero immunization records: Squamish Waldorf school at 28.6 per cent. The average reported zero immunization records in Howe Sound-area schools was 4.5 per cent, the same as the health authority region’s average.

Only four Squamish schools with Grade 6 students reported the percentage of their zero-vaccination rate. Les Aiglons, Mamquam Elementary, Squamish Montessori Elementary, and Valleycliffe Elementary reported that none of their students were completely without immunization.

Don Ross Middle School and Howe Sound Secondary did not have or report their zero vaccination rates.

Kindergarten

Kindergarteners can have eight types of vaccinations. TDaP-Polio means the student has had their fourth or fifth dose of diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis-containing vaccine on or before their fourth birthday, and at least their third dose of the polio vaccine by the same age. When children are a year old, they can be immunized against varicella, which requires two doses. They are also eligible to be vaccinated against the measles, mumps, rubella, meningococcal C, and hepatitis B. The up-to-date category shows the percentage of students who reported to have had all the vaccinations.

Grade 6

In Grade 6, VCH records show vaccinations for two or three doses for hepatitis B, two doses for varicella, and HPV is broken down into male and female categories with two doses each. Vaccinations rate for Squamish Waldorf School Grade 6 students were not available. HPV vaccination rates were also not available for Les Aiglons and Squamish Montessori Elementary.

Grade 9

Grade 9 records include three doses of TDaP and another since the students’ 10th birthday, two doses of HPV for female students and meningococcal quadrivalent conjugate vaccine after they were eight months old and 11 years. Vaccination rates were not available for Howe Sound Secondary and Stawamus School’s Grade 9 students. 

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