Schools offer free HPV vaccine for pre-teen girls

| 04/10/2013

(CNS): Half of all Year 8 girls in government schools took up the opportunity to protect themselves against the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) with a free vaccine last year, and the Ministry of Health in partnership with the Public Health Department and the Cancer Society is offering the vaccine to girls aged 11-12 at both the John Gray and Clifton Hunter High Schools this month. This vaccination involves three injections given by school nurses over six months — at the time of the appointment, two months after the first dose, and six months after the first dose.

While the HPV vaccine is not mandatory, School Health Coordinator, Nurse Joanna Rose- Wright, urged parents and guardians to have their young girls take advantage of this cervical cancer prevention vaccination.

Letters were sent home to all parents advising of the process and requesting confirmation of consent for the child to be given the vaccination. The letters are to be returned to the child’s school teacher or the school nurse on the date indicated in the correspondence.

“No child will be vaccinated without parental consent, and parents will have the opportunity to be present at the time of vaccination if they choose,”  Nurse Rose-Wright added.

While the vaccine is being offered to girls in the government high schools, other girls between the ages of 11 and 17 from both government and private schools, accompanied by their parents, can also get the  HPV vaccination at the following Health Services Authority (HSA) facilities: the Public Health Clinic at the Cayman Islands Hospital, West Bay and Bodden Town Health Centres, and Faith Hospital in Cayman Brac. Appointments can be made by contacting the Health Centres.

For further information, contact the Public Health Clinic on 244-2648; West Bay Health Centre on 949-3439; Bodden Town Health Centre on 947-2299; Faith Hospital on 948-2243 and Little Cayman Clinic on 948-0072.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Category: Health

About the Author ()

Comments (16)

Trackback URL | Comments RSS Feed

  1. Anonymous says:

    Read More 

  2. Anonymous says:

    So I guess those who are anti-vaccine are against getting their tetanus, measles and flu shots then? Let me know how that works out…

  3. Mother Goose says:

    Did You Know!

    There is no doubt that many well-intentioned moms out there are being seriously misled — by Merck, Gardasil’s maker, the media, public health officials, and perhaps their own physicians into believing that Gardasil is a good thing for their daughters. But instead of hearing about Gardasil, the “long-awaited cure for cervical cancer” (as it’s portrayed in the media), what if it was put to you this way: Gardasil has caused thousands of serious reactions (some of them deadly), and your daughter can still get human papilloma virus (HPV)after receiving it.

    As Merck's own literature says, Gardasil does not protect women against some "non-vaccine" HPV types. So allow me to repeat myself: even if girls accept the risks and get vaccinated, they can still get HPV. And as the above article illustrates, the risks are significant and are being reported not only in the United States but overseas as well.

     

    In the United States, as of August 2012 a review of the National Vaccine Information Center revealed the following, quite alarming, statistic about this unnecessary vaccine: 2,207 adverse reactions to Gardasil have been reported. Among them:

     

    5 girls died

    31 were considered life-threatening

    1,385 required a visit to the emergency room 

     

    Did You Know That Drinking Green Tea Protects You Against H.P.V.?

  4. Anonymous says:

    Yea you know how the anti vaccine trolls don't have facts.

    http://www.naturalnews.com/038858_vaccine_court_autistic_children_damaged.html

    Read the article and you may get to this paragraph.

     

    A year prior, a young boy named Bailey was also awarded compensation after suffering a seizure and developing Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis (ADEM) following vaccination with MMR. Bailey's family was eventually awarded compensation for the boy's injuries, which the court reluctantly admitted were caused by the vaccine.
     

     

  5. Anonymous says:

    Parents need to be aware that the HPV is a sexually transmitted disease and the risks associated with the HPV vaccination. Education on safe sex is safer than risking side effects from the vaccination. HPV if left untreated can result in cervical cancer so caught in time is curable. I am not discouraging the dispension of the vaccine only asking parents to research the subject themselves and make their own informed decision whether this vaccine is truly needed or not.

    • Anonymous says:

      Sex Education a must in schools..we live in the dinosaur tmes!

    • Anonymous says:

      Yes, HPV is an STI, but it is an INCREDIBLY common one and even with proper and full condom use for all sex acts it is possible to transmit HPV, so education on safe sex won't necessarily protect people from contracting HPV.Even "abstinence" in the form of no penetrative sex will not necessarily prevent transmission. And many people aren't even aware that they have HPV and can easily pass it on to others without even knowing they are doing it.

      Also, there is a lot of misinformation out there about the risks associated with the HPV vaccination. The consensus following extensive trials and experience is that the risks are (1) possible pain and redness at the injection site, (2) fever, (3) headache and (4) fainting. All of these side effects are associated with any vaccination and some are associated with any medical procedure in general. There are NO unusual or severe problems associated with Gardasil. And before anyone says we just don't know yet or people are lying, in comparable tests the influenza vaccine is actually more "dangerous" than the HPV vaccination, but you don't hear the same kind of "but there are risks" talks about the flu shot. It is ALWAYS better to talk to a doctor about risks for your particular child rather than reading websites put up by anti-vaxxers (which are listed by some other commenters).

      While I agree that parents should research everything themselves and make an informed decision of whether or not their child should get the vaccine, this particular STI is very unique in its incidence, transmission and effects and there is a safe and effective vaccination, so the case for vaccination is really quite strong.

      Get the facts: http://www.cdc.gov/std/hpv/stdfact-hpv.htm, http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd-vac/hpv/

  6. UHUHUH says:

    If you love your children see below.

    Gardasil, the cervical cancer vaccine recommended for girls as young as 12 years old, is causing side effects ranging from seizures and numbness to dizzy spells,fainting and paralysis.

    More than 17 girls a week in Australia have experienced such reactions after receiving the vaccination, but the country’s Department of Health and Aging refuses to release their details.

     

    Further, as of November 30, 2007, 496 adverse reaction reports were filed with Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Association (TGA). Of them, 468 had the cervical cancer vaccine as the sole suspected cause.n the United States, up to 1,700 women have reported adverse reactions from Gardasil, including at least seven deaths.

     

    To date, more than 10 million doses of Gardasil have been distributed worldwide.TGA noted that the safety of Gardasil was being monitored by officials in Australia and overseas, and that the adverse reactions are consistent with those expected from any vaccine

    • Anonymous says:

      Anti-vaccine cave dwellers are so dangerous.

      • Naturalistic says:

        And you will wander outside the cave until your child falls ill will a side effect… then you will try it piece it all together and come share in the knowledge of the cave dwellers…

        Someone else mentioned NATURALNEWS.COM Check it out…It's a great site.. A bit political but there is a lot of scientic data AGAINST vaccines… Spend 10 minutes searching on the site before you reply… It's shocking and scary what we are told we must inject into our children 🙁 we just don't know the truth most times… The vaccine business is very lucrative… Even more so when you force people to be your customers… Now that's great for any business! I mean you can't even go to school without it for the most part so it shows the extent of the system.

        Cayman needs to think for themselves… Stop following the rules and regs of countries and orgs blindly… Do the research moms and dads… I WOULD NEVER LET MY DAUGHTER TAKE THIS VACCINE… WHY WOULD ANYONE WHO KNOWS THE RISKS??? It definitely begs the question, eh?

        Here's a suggestion… Print off the 3 most interesting articles regarding vaccine risks fromnaturalness or elsewhere… Take the, to your Pediatrician and ask them to discuss and assure you that your child will be safe.

      • Anonymous says:

        Give them to your own children and leave the rest of us alone. No doubt the harpies will be out in force with their uber-liberal agenda. So be it.