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| TOPIC: ROLE OF THE PRACTICE NURSE |
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| Vaccination |
| Vaccine schedules |
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| When a child is born, it receives antibodies from its mother, which give some protection against disease (depending upon the mother’s own immunity). However, these antibodies don’t last long (a few weeks to a few months) and need to be replaced by the child’s own immune system to make sure that protection continues throughout life. The immune system produces antibodies either when it is exposed to a particular infectious organism, or when the child is vaccinated. |
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| The UK primary childhood immunisation schedule starts at 2 months of age, when the antibodies a child acquires from its mother have disappeared. Delay in delivering these vaccines can result in a child being unprotected against diseases that are known to cause severe illness and sometimes death. |
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| The only time that there is absolutely no need to vaccinate against a disease is when that disease has been eradicated, as in the case of smallpox. |
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