A recent report has revealed a troubling trend in Australia: childhood vaccination rates are declining. Dr. Kasia Bolsewicz, Social Science Research Fellow at the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance, authors the report. In fact, she writes that she is “deeply troubled by this turn of events.” She’s found that the greatest obstacle to vaccination—and thus the key to overcoming this decline—lies in practical barriers to vaccine access. Others believe that social media misinformation and harmful U.S.-inspired trends only exacerbate the fire.
Dr. Bolsewicz wants to stress the urgency of her findings, cautioning that if further declines are not achieved, serious public health repercussions could follow. The Children’s Vaccination Access Report puts forward a range of important recommendations that aim to get more Australian children, particularly in disadvantaged communities, immunised.
Practical Barriers to Vaccination
Dr. Bolsewicz outlines several everyday barriers to vaccination that families experience in trying to vaccinate their children. Vaccinations during childhood are free through the National Immunisation Program. She points to the fact that there are still costs, which will still deter parents.
“Even though childhood vaccination in Australia is free under the National Immunisation Program, there are still costs,” – Dr. Kasia Bolsewicz
She recommends that the number of vaccinations able to be bulk billed in a single appointment should be expanded to reduce some of these financial barriers. On a practical level, beyond vaccine misinformation education, Dr. Bolsewicz recommends offering vaccines after traditional work hours and in a variety of locations to improve access.
“Hopefully, we can really act very collaboratively and work to implement those strategies,” – Dr. Kasia Bolsewicz
By taking this multifaceted approach, we are giving parents a better chance to vaccinate their children. This is all the more critical in an environment where vaccine misinformation abounds.
Influence of Misinformation
Undoubtedly, the impact of misinformation on declining vaccination rates has been profound. And, as Terry Slevin, Director of Education and Research at the Cancer Council of WA, bluntly puts it, vaccine critics are helping drive this trend. As he points out, disinformation is a leading contributing factor. He stresses the importance of being vigilant against misinformation, especially given its border-crossing capabilities in the age of social media.
“It’s super important for us to be aware of the misinformation across the border and be prepared here to address it,” – Terry Slevin
Dr. Maryke Steffens further emphasizes that without a coordinating, multi-sector action, we will not be able to combat misinformation effectively.
“Because barriers to childhood vaccination are multifaceted, no single intervention alone will solve this problem. We need coordinated, multi-sector action,” – Dr. Maryke Steffens
Unified field experts both within and outside of academia believe that combating the spread of misinformation will be key to reversing the recent down trend in vaccination rates.
Government Initiatives and Future Directions
In June, Health Minister Mark Butler introduced the government’s new National Immunisation Strategy, which he describes as a “road map for improving vaccination uptake around Australia over the next five years.”
“Even though our childhood vaccination rates are still world-leading, they are trending in exactly the wrong direction and must be turned around,” – Mark Butler
This strategy aims to strengthen existing initiatives while expanding others, ensuring that parents receive accurate information about vaccinations and their benefits.
Dr. Bolsewicz’s report is a wake-up call, highlighting an urgent need for action. He cautions that if we fail to address the fall in vaccination rates, we are at risk of experiencing outbreaks of diseases vaccines have protected Australians from for decades.
“But if we don’t do anything, we risk children not being protected against vaccine-preventable diseases and seeing in Australia, in communities, diseases that we haven’t seen for many years — some of them are very serious and can have very serious side effects,” – Dr. Kasia Bolsewicz
Vaccination campaigns have prevented more than 150 million deaths around the globe. To put Australian lives in danger by continued decline in vaccination rates is unacceptable.
