Virtual reality for routine immunisations in needle phobic children with and without developmental disabilities: A pilot study.

Unlabelled: Virtual reality for routine immunisations in needle phobic children with and without developmental disabilities: a pilot study.

Background: Virtual Reality (VR) headsets can improve needle procedure success and experiences for children, but they have not been evaluated to support immunisation in children with anxiety and behavioural challenges. This study assessed the feasibility and acceptability of VR for immunisation in children with needle phobia, including children with and without developmental disabilities.

BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccination in children alters cytokine responses to heterologous pathogens and Toll-like receptor agonists.

Background: Vaccines can have beneficial off-target (heterologous) effects that alter immune responses to, and protect against, unrelated infections. The heterologous effects of COVID-19 vaccines have not been investigated in children.

Aim: To investigate heterologous and specific immunological effects of BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccination in children.

Influenza vaccine administration in a paediatric intensive care unit.

Aim: We describe the clinical profile of children and outcomes of influenza immunisation for patients in a paediatric intensive care unit (PICU).

Methods: Over two influenza seasons: 19/04/2018 to 07/08/2018 and 02/05/2019 to 10/10/2019, an immunisation nurse and PICU nurse coordinator met weekly and identified patients to receive the influenza vaccine. An inpatient list of PICU patients was screened for eligible patients: greater than 6 months of age, did not have imminent procedures (e.

BCG vaccination to reduce the impact of COVID-19 in healthcare workers: Protocol for a randomised controlled trial (BRACE trial).

Introduction: BCG vaccination modulates immune responses to unrelated pathogens. This off-target effect could reduce the impact of emerging pathogens. As a readily available, inexpensive intervention that has a well-established safety profile, BCG is a good candidate for protecting healthcare workers (HCWs) and other vulnerable groups against COVID-19.

Minimising Immunisation Pain of childhood vaccines: The MIP pilot study.

Aim: Pain associated with immunisations can result in distress and/or anxiety for children and parents. We assessed the feasibility and acceptability of two novel devices; Coolsense (cold) and Buzzy (vibration ± cooling pads) versus standard care to minimise pain during immunisations. We also evaluated compliance to the devices and parent's perception of the effectiveness of the devices/standard care for minimising pain during immunisation.

Impact of Australian mandatory 'No Jab, No Pay' and 'No Jab, No Play' immunisation policies on immunisation services, parental attitudes to vaccination and vaccine uptake, in a tertiary paediatric hospital, the Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne.

Introduction: 'No Jab, No Play' and 'No Jab, No Pay' mandatory immunisation policies were introduced in the state of Victoria and Australia-wide, respectively, in January 2016. They restrict access to childcare/kindergarten and family assistance payments respectively, for under-vaccinated children. We aimed to describe the proportion of attendees to immunisation services of a tertiary hospital, the Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne (RCH), who were motivated by the policies to discuss or catch-up vaccination.

Distribution of Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) Vaccine in Victoria 2013-2015.

Background: The Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine has an important role mitigating tuberculosis (TB) disease in high risk children. In Victoria, immunisation services at the Royal Children's Hospital (RCH) and Monash Health (MH) have been funded as the major providers of BCG vaccine since 2013.

Methods: In this article, we performed retrospective analysis of patients who attended RCH and MH for BCG between 1st November 2013- 30th November 2015.

Recurrence risk of a hypotonic hyporesponsive episode in two Australian specialist immunisation clinics.

Background: A hypotonic hyporesponsive episode (HHE) is a well-described adverse event following immunisation (AEFI) in young children. There is limited data regarding recurrence post re-vaccination.

Method: A retrospective analysis of HHEs reported to two tertiary paediatric hospitals in Australia: The Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne [2006-11] and the Children's Hospital Westmead, Sydney [1997-2014].

Immunizations under sedation at a paediatric hospital in Melbourne, Australia from 2012-2016.

Background: Sedation for immunizations is of particular importance in a subset of paediatric patients with anxiety disorders, needle phobia, developmental or behavioural disorders. The Royal Children's Hospital (RCH) Melbourne offers a unique immunization under sedation service for these patients. We aimed to evaluate the number and types of patients using inpatient sedation for immunizations, distraction and sedation techniques used, and outcomes of these procedures.

No jab, no record: Catch-up vaccination of children in immigration detention.

International Health and Medical Services (IHMS) are contracted to provide health services, including catch-up vaccination, for individuals in immigration detention. Our audit of catch-up vaccination in asylum seeker children who spent time in held detention demonstrates inadequate and suboptimal vaccine delivery in this setting, and no evidence that IHMS recorded vaccines on the Australian Childhood Immunisation Register at the time. We also found substantial shortfalls in vaccination for these children after they were released from detention.

Providing opportunistic immunisations for at-risk inpatients in a tertiary paediatric hospital.

Attaining high immunisation coverage rates for children with medical conditions is vital. The Royal Children's Hospital (RCH) Immunisation Service has the opportunity to check each inpatient's immunisation status and provide opportunistic vaccines and/or bring the Australian Childhood Immunisation Register (ACIR) up-to-date. This paper highlights that during admission, one quarter of children were not up-to-date with routine scheduled immunisations and 42% of those inpatients due or overdue for immunisation were vaccinated.

Establishing intra- and inter-rater agreement of the Face, Legs, Activity, Cry, Consolability scale for evaluating pain in toddlers during immunization.

Background: The Face, Legs, Activity, Cry, Consolability (FLACC) scale is a five-item tool that was developed to assess postoperative pain in young children. The tool is frequently used as an outcome measure in studies investigating acute procedural pain in young children; however, there are limited published psychometric data in this context.

Objective: To establish inter-rater and intrarater agreement of the FLACC scale in toddlers during immunization.

Pain management strategies used during early childhood immunisation in Victoria.

Aim: The study aims to identify pain management practices used during scheduled childhood immunisation.

Methods: A survey of members of the Australian Nurses Federation (Victorian Branch) Immunisation Nurses Special Interest Group. Questions included frequency of use of pain reduction strategies during immunisations for infants, toddlers and children, injection techniques and existence of an articulated pain management policy.

Syncope and seizures following human papillomavirus vaccination: a retrospective case series.

Objective: To quantify and characterise the reports of syncope and seizures following quadrivalent (4v) human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination.

Design And Setting: Retrospective case series of notifications to SAEFVIC (Surveillance of Adverse Events Following Vaccination In the Community), May 2007 - April 2009.

Main Outcome Measures: Incidence of syncope and seizure following 4vHPV vaccination; clinical outcomes.

Immunisation rates of children with cystic fibrosis using the Australian Childhood Immunisation Register.

Aim: The Australian Immunisation Handbook (ninth edition) recommends children with cystic fibrosis (CF) receive routine scheduled immunisations plus annual influenza vaccine and an additional pneumococcal vaccine at both 12 months and 4-5 years. Adherence with these recommendations is unknown. This study aimed to determine the immunisation status of children with CF attending the Royal Children's Hospital (RCH), Melbourne.

Hypersensitivity reactions to human papillomavirus vaccine in Australian schoolgirls: retrospective cohort study.

Objective: To describe the outcomes of clinical evaluation, skin testing, and vaccine challenge in adolescent schoolgirls with suspected hypersensitivity to the quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccine introduced in Australian schools in 2007.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting: Two tertiary paediatric allergy centres in Victoria and South Australia, Australia.