The Health Department has a three shot approach to immunisations on the Island. There are four child clinics, a school programme and a travel health clinic.

A testament to the success of the programme is the absence of diseases like tetanus, whooping cough, diphtheria, mumps, measles and polio. These diseases still cause widespread death in many countries in the world.

Nurse Lynn Jackson heads the immunisation department and said being vigilant about inoculations is still important.

“The danger is that we become complacent and then, because of global travel, the disease emerges,” she said. “It is because we continue to be immunised that children enjoy the best health. I think generally we have a healthy population.”

In 2004, 95 percent of all babies born in Bermuda received their shots. While the figure is a healthy one, Ms Jackson pointed out that a little slackening off can be enough to see disease rear its head.

“Coverage for measles in the UK has decreased down to 82 percent and they are now starting to see an outbreak,” she said. (Measles has not been seen in Bermuda and the entire Caribbean region for several years.)

And because the primary immunisation programme is so effective, Ms Jackson said her office is able to work on other diseases like the flu. Currently they have instituted the ‘Cover your Cough’ campaign, which reminds all to cover their coughs, sneezes, properly wash their hands and discard used tissues.

“That is a great focus of what we currently doing as a good hygiene practice because that reduces many of those airborne illnesses,” she said. And cutting down on germs in the air cuts down on the number of people contracting the illness. This results not only in a healthier population but there is also a reduction of absenteeism in the work-place.

Immunisations are not mandatory not even for newborns. So why do so many get their shots?

“Children are seen within the first couple of weeks of being born through our home visiting programme,” Ms Jackson said. “They don’t get any shots at that point. Immunisations start at two months. The home visitor sees the child and lets the mother know about the immunisations and invites them to attend at two months or to see their own physician.”

The department has six home nurses and the visits they make are free to all who give birth in Bermuda. Additionally vaccinations for babies at the child clinics are also free.

Babies are brought to the clinic for their inoculations at two months, four months and six months. At two months the combination vaccine of diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough and heamophilus flu is given. Nurses also check that the babies are developing on track when they are brought in for their shots. That by a certain age they are holding their heads up, grabbing for items, will follow an object with their eyes, respond to sound babble and begin to support their weight.

All schools on the Island — public and private — report their new entrants to the immunisation clinic. This is easily done through the 11 nurses who operate solely in the schools. Through this programme Ms Jackson said most all 15 year-olds get a tetanus shot. That comes just in time for their TCD bike examination and before they get their licences and are out on the roads riding.

And the travel health clinic offers advice and inoculations for people travelling to disease risky places. A doctor consults with the traveller and suggests what vaccines or other precautions to take and when.