The UK has updated its childhood immunisation schedule. For parents who had already mapped out their child’s vaccination appointments in their heads, the announcement might have come as an unwelcome surprise.
The changes include routine protection against chickenpox through the combined MMRV vaccine, the removal of the Hib/MenC vaccine (which helps protect against two of the causes of meningitis and blood poisoning) from the one-year appointment, and a new vaccination visit at 18 months – bringing forward the MMRV vaccine, and adding a different Hib containing vaccine.
