Photo: PA
Children in England will be able to get their first Covid-19 vaccination from next week but experts have expressed concern over the youngest children getting a jab without parental consent.
Health leaders approved first doses of the Pfizer vaccine for over-12s on Monday.
But Professor Anthony Harnden, deputy chairman of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), said he would not feel comfortable with a 12-year-old getting a jab if their parent had not consented.
Vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi said children will only be able to have a vaccination against their parents’ wishes following a meeting with a clinician.
Professor Devi Sridhar, personal chairwoman in global public health at the University of Edinburgh, said mixed messaging surrounding jabs for 12 to 15-year-olds “hasn’t helped”.
She told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “I personally think part of it is because they were so late with a decision – we have just had the same evidence that other countries have had since May and June, and those countries ran ahead because they knew the school year was coming and started vaccinating their children.
“There hasn’t really been new evidence that’s come up in the UK shift in position … they’re trying to explain to people why they’re doing something now that they didn’t do two months ago.”
#LeaveOurKidsAlone began to trend on Twitter as there was outrage from people on social media who were furious at the government’s new vaccine rollout.
Thankfully, a paediatrician was on hand to explain exactly why under 18’s have the right to consent to treatment.
Tessa Davis gives tips on surviving as a clinician and as a human, she put this thread together explaining consent for under 18s getting treatment without parental agreement.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Related: ‘Disgusting:’ Anti-vax posters with razor blades found at rail and Tube stations
