Valencian schools will vaccinate preschool and special education students against flu, the President of the Generalitat of Valencia announced this Wednesday. Carlos Masonwho said the plan was to immunize some 72,000 students.
This initiative, according to the head of the Council, “will facilitate the administration of intranasal vaccination without the need to travel to health centers, which will contribute to the reconciliation of families.”
The target population of this vaccination campaign These are minors born in 2020 and 2021.attended pre-school institutions in state and subsidized centers of the Valencian Community.
Also all students of educational centers special educationin which minors and young people up to 22 years of age are participating. From these groups, the vaccine will be given to those whose families express a desire to participate in the campaign.
The President explained that the aim of the campaign is “to make it easier for families to protect minors from the flu and stop infections among them, as well as to prevent the transmission of the virus to vulnerable people, such as the elderly or people with certain pathologies,” who are at greater risk of complications.
This campaign, which will start on October 1stwill be the first school vaccination against influenza launched by the Generalitat and coordinated between the Departments of Education and Health.
Thus, teams of health workers will plan vaccination days at their facilities with educational centers, which will be held as part of the 2024-2025 flu vaccination campaign.
It should be noted that prior to the implementation of this strategy last season, it was implemented in the city’s health department. Elda pilot experience of influenza vaccination in the training centers of this Faculty of Health.
This culminated in a successful participation that led to its extension to all health departments of the Valencian Community, as highlighted by the Generalitat of Valencia.
Intranasal vaccine
The vaccine that will be administered to preschool children is administered intranasally and only to students who have no contraindications to this type of vaccine.
It is administered as a small dose into each nostril and is a trivalent vaccine. Similarly, in special education centers, in certain cases, the administration of the intramuscular vaccine and simultaneous immunization with the COVID-19 vaccine will be considered.
The Generalitat has included for the first time an intranasal vaccine, indicated for children aged 2 to 4, in the latest influenza campaign, which began in October 2023.
This vaccine prevents punctures of the smallest onesbecause it comes in the form of a nasal spray, and among its benefits is that it neutralizes the virus at the entry point – the nasal mucosa.
At the epidemiological level, vaccination of the child population is very important for several reasons. Every year, children under 5 years of age are most likely to become infected and sick with influenza. In addition, it does not always proceed in a mild form and in some cases requires hospitalization.
On the other hand, children can transmit influenza to other people, who may become seriously ill with the risk of serious complications.
Thus, according to these sources, protecting minors from influenza prevents infection of older adults and other vulnerable groups and helps stop the transmission of the virus.
During the previous campaign, the Valencian Community had already introduced childhood influenza vaccination for boys and girls aged 6 to 59 months, a recommendation that has also been included by the Public Health Commission for the 2024-2025 season.