Murrumbidgee health region is tops in rates of childhood vaccination

Figures from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare have revealed that in Murrumbidgee – which includes Wagga – 96.2 per cent of one-year-old children are fully immunised, the highest level in Australia.

For five-year-olds, the result drops only slightly to 95.9 per cent, meaning in the whole region there are only 459 children not fully immunised.

Director of public health Tracey Oakman said the Murrumbidgee region had done well in all immunisation age categories, and commended both the private and public health sectors for the result.

But the figures, which were from 2016-17, but only released on Thursday, were not grounds for complacency, she said.

Ms Oakman said a recent case in Deniliquin – in which a person recently arrived from overseas was thought to have been infected with measles – highlighted the need for continued vigilance.

“People arriving from overseas can come in carrying certain illnesses that we no longer see here in Australia very often,” she said.

Wagga mother of three Melissa Wheatley has had all of her children immunised.

“I think it is really important, not only to protect my own children against preventable diseases, but also to protect other children who cannot be immunised,” she said.

“There are children in the community who cannot be immunised for medical reasons, and they need to be protected too.”