Adults run for flu vaccines, but keep their kids away

Parents are refraining from vaccinating their children against seasonal flu, even as adults are vaccinating themselves in record numbers.

A telephone survey of 186 parents commissioned by the Association of Israeli Pediatricians last month found that only 40 percent intended to vaccinate their children, despite predictions of a particularly severe flu outbreak this year due to the interaction of seasonal flu and swine flu.

These predictions led the Health Ministry to recommend that all children between the ages of six months and 5 years be immunized.

However, this is far higher than the 15 percent of parents who reported vaccinating their children last year.

Moreover, only 22 percent of parents thought vaccination was important in preventing flu, compared to 27 percent who cited hygiene, such as washing one's hands, and 41 percent who cited staying home when sick. Only 47 percent believed immunization would actually reduce the chances of their children getting the flu.

Interestingly, fathers were more likely than mothers to vaccinate their children: 25 percent of fathers reported doing so last year and 48 percent said they intended to do so this year, compared to 8 percent and 35 percent of mothers.

Of those who said they would not vaccinate their children, the leading cause (38 percent) was belief that the vaccine is ineffective, followed by fear of side effects (18 percent).

The survey's findings led the association to launch an explanatory campaign among teachers and nursery school teachers about the importance of flu vaccinations, in the hope that teachers will then influence parents.

"Israeli parents have not internalized the new recommendations about immunizing children," said the association's chairman, Prof. Mati Berkowitz.

The Health Ministry's recommendation to vaccinate all children up to age 5 was issued about a year and a half ago, after America's Center for Disease Control advised flu vaccinations for all children under age 18.

Berkowitz also stressed that side effects from the swine flu vaccine are rare.

HMOs use up vaccines

In contrast to the situation among children, Haaretz found that adults are getting flu vaccinations in record numbers: The health maintenance organizations report that they have already used up about a third of the vaccines they ordered.

The Clalit HMO reported a particularly high vaccination rate: It has already immunized 300,000 patients, accounting for almost half the 700,000 vaccines it ordered. Of these, only 15,000 were children.

The Maccabi HMO has administered 111,787 of the 340,000 vaccines it ordered, including 5,310 to children under age six. Meuhedet has used up 52,000 of its 170,000 doses and Leumit has used 24,000 of its 75,000 doses.

In addition to children, the Health Ministry recommends the flu vaccine for anyone 50 or older, women who are pregnant or recently gave birth, people with chronic illnesses, and health-care workers.

The pediatricians association predicts that the number of flu cases will rise in the next two weeks, as children returned to school yesterday after the Sukkot holiday.

"We also saw an increase in cases in the two weeks after the school year began," explained Dr. Amnon Kiro of the association's research division. "Now, with the weather getting colder, we expect an additional increase within two weeks."

The number of new flu cases declined during last week's holiday.

The first 350,000 doses of swine flu vaccine, as opposed to seasonal flu, are due to arrive in Israel later this month. Israel will have 2.3 million doses by March 2010.