From a Concerned Mum: Are You Worried About Your Children’s Vaccination ?

Many parents throughout New Zealand are grappling with uncertainty surrounding the government’s approval of the Pfizer vaccine rollout for 5-to-11-year-olds and the ongoing 12-plus rollout.

For those of you who are thinking of writing to your school to seek clarity on whether the school intends to hold vaccine clinics and confirmation that parents’ consent will be sought, here is a template or starting point.

Please share with any concerned parents.

To the Board of Trustees,

[School name]

As the 2022 school year begins many [school name] parents are uncertain of how the government Pfizer vaccination roll-out approval for 5-to-11-year-olds and the ongoing 12 year plus rollout will impact our children.

[school name] has two age brackets now covered by the Pfizer vaccine roll-out: 5-11, and 12-plus.

We would like confirmation and clarity on the following:

• Clarity from [school name] on their policies and plans for any Pfizer vaccine roll out for students 5-11 and 12-plus.
• Confirmation that parents written consent or presence will be required for all children 5-11 and those 12 and over to be administered the Pfizer vaccination while at [school name] School.
• Confirmation that [school name] families will be offered the opportunity to keep their children home from school and/or opt out of Pfizer vaccination clinics if held at [school name].

Concern for our 12-years-plus children being vaccinated without our consent arises from government publications, New Zealand legislation and World Health Organisation policy (see below).

The Unite against COVID-19 site outlines that children in the age group 5-11 must have a parent, caregiver or legal guardian accompany them to their appointment and provide consent for them to be vaccinated. But it goes on to say, “While young people aged 12 and over have the right to give their own consent, we recommend they discuss vaccination with their parents, whanau or a trusted support person.”

We also seek confirmation that [school name] will not hold vaccination clinics on school grounds.

This concern arises from Chris Hipkins, the Minister of Education and COVID-19 Minister, stating, “While there are no plans for a school-based immunisation programme, schools are being considered as community vaccination sites.”

If [school name] does intend to hold vaccination clinics on [school name] grounds parents seek to retain the ability to limit consent to either have our children vaccinated in a medical environment or to opt to be vaccine free.

For some families, providing clarity on this will be the difference between continuing sending our children to [school name] or making the decision to home school.

Our children’s health is our primary concern, and we would like to ensure we retain full consent for all health decisions, including vaccination for our children at [school name].

Regards,

Supporting Information:

World Health Organisation

“An implied consent process by which parents are informed of imminent vaccination through social mobilization and communication, sometimes including letters directly addressed to the parents. Subsequently, the physical presence of the child or adolescent, with or without an accompanying parent at the vaccination session, is considered to imply consent. This practice is based on the opt-out principle and parents who do not consent to vaccination are expected implicitly to take steps to ensure that their child or adolescent does not participate in the vaccination session. This may include not letting the child or adolescent attend school on a vaccination day if vaccine delivery occurs through schools.” World Health Organisation

New Zealand Legislation

Code of Health and Disability Services and Consumers’ Rights: if a health professional is satisfied that the young person fully understands what is involved with the treatment, then the young person can consent.

Care of Children Act: New Zealand courts follows a British case in which the House of Lords decided a child under 16 was legally competent to consent to medical examination and treatment – if they had sufficient maturity and intelligence to understand the nature and implications of that treatment.

What rights do New Zealand children and their parents have when giving consent to be vaccinated: University of Waikato, Professor of Law Clarie Breen: When it comes to consenting to vaccination, a health professional must be satisfied the child understands why it is necessary and the reasons for it. They must also be satisfied the child understands the risks, benefits and outcomes involved.

Suitability of vaccinations for 5 – 11 year olds:

Unite against COVID: COVID-19 generally has mild effects in children and is rarely severe or fatal. Children and young people who have COVID-19 will commonly have no symptoms or only mild respiratory symptoms, similar to a cold.                                              

Immunisation Advisory Centre –  There have been no intensive care admissions for children to date in NZ. The rare post-infectious inflammatory syndrome (PIMS-TS) has not been seen as yet in NZ.

As hospitalisation/death due to COVID are rare/very rare and longer-term consequences (PIMS-TS; long-COVID) also very rare, the direct health benefits to this age group themselves of COVID-19 vaccination are less but are not zero.

Current clinical trials of the Pfizer vaccine in 5 – 11 year age bracket was relatively small. We do not know whether more rare side effects will be seen in children also.  Peri/myocarditis was identified quickly in international vaccine roll-outs. In the US, as millions of children are vaccinated over the coming months, this will provide more certainty for children awaiting the vaccine in Aotearoa/NZ whilst we currently have much lower COVID incidence. The incidence of peri/myocarditis in children as a result of the Pfizer vaccine is still uknown. (Pfizer trials for 5 – 11-year-olds will be complete in 2023).

Starship Hospital: COVID-19 still appears to remain mostly a mild and/or asymptomatic disease in younger children.

UK’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation: For the vast majority of children, COVID-19 infection is asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic and will resolve without treatment.

USA Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: The survival rate of children aged from birth to 17 years old is 99.998%. 

The UK’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation has assessed that the risks to healthy children outweigh the benefits at this time.

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