Three diseases added to vaccine list for students

The province has updated its immunization requirements for the students beginning classes in the 2014/15 school year to include three more diseases.

All students attending primary or secondary school this fall will need to have proof of immunization against meningococcal disease, whooping cough and, for children born in 2010 or later, chickenpox.

This is in addition to updated dose requirements for tetanus, diphtheria, polio and mumps immunizations. Requirements for measles and rubella immunizations have not changed.

Parents should double-check with their doctor, nurse practitioner or local public health unit to make sure their children's immunization records are up to date, says the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.

They should also make sure their child's updated immunization record has been reported to their local public health unit.

Parents can get their children vaccinated through their health-care provider – such as their family physician or through a community health centre, says the Sudbury and District Health Unit.

Vaccines are also available at area walk-in clinics and at any of the health unit's offices.

Thanks to vaccines, infectious diseases that were the leading cause of death worldwide 100 years ago are now the cause of less than five per cent of all deaths in Canada.

The Ontario government currently publicly funds 21 different vaccines through its provincial immunization program that protect against 16 diseases.