What does this indicator measure?
This indicator measures the percentage of 2-year-old children in Dallas County vaccinated against vaccine-preventable diseases on the 4:3:1 schedule and at the appropriate age. The data was collected in Collaboration with Beyond ABC: Growing Up in Dallas County, 2007, a report issued by Children’s Medical Center Dallas. The underlying data source for this indicator is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Immunization Survey, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2005.
Why is this indicator important?
The National Vaccine Advisory Committee has identified several key barriers to timely vaccinations, including being uninsured or underinsured, living in public housing, having parents with low education rates, and having a single mother. In addition, parents may not understand the importance of keeping vaccinations up to date. The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) has concluded that the lack of a medical home is another significant barrier to a child being adequately vaccinated.
DSHS strategies to increase the level of immunization among children include promoting a child’s access to primary care through a medical home, strengthening the ImmTrac immunization registry, using reminder and recall systems by healthcare providers, educating providers, educating the public, and implementing partnerships.
How are we doing?
I
mmunization rates among 2-year-old children in Dallas County are at an all-time high, according to the 2005 National Immunization Survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Immunizations save lives, suffering and money. According to a CDC control study, common childhood vaccines will prevent more than 14 million cases of disease, prevent 33,500 deaths over the lifetimes of the children born this year, and save $10 billion per year nationally. When large numbers of children are not immunized fully, the chances of an epidemic increase substantially.
Percent of 2-Year-Old Children Vaccinated on 4:3:1 Schedule |
| 1991 | 1995 | 1996 | 1998 | 2000 | 2002 | 2004 | 2005 |
Dallas County | 34.0% | 72.0% | 75.0% | 72.5% | 68.9% | 77.3% | 73.1% | 78.7% |
Source:
Beyond ABC: Growing Up in Dallas County, 2007, a report issued by
Children’s Medical Center Dallas.
More than 50 public and private immunization clinics around Dallas County provide low-cost immunizations, yet child advocates remain concerned that under Texas law parents may choose not to have their children immunized and those children may still attend public school and child care.
The Immunize Kids! Dallas Area Partnership, composed of more than 100 members with links to the public and private sectors, focuses on outreach and education to address these barriers. The partnership encourages families to fully immunize their children by age 2. Immunize Kids! recommends increasing parent awareness and strengthening both the immunization registry and legislation to require all children to be immunized.