OLYMPIA - Childhood vaccinations remain one of the most effective ways to protect children against serious and preventable illnesses, some of which have no cure or treatment, according to the state Department of Health.
     Parents should ensure their kids have all the immunizations they need to begin school, department officials advised.
     "Immunization not only protects children, but it also protects the people they come into contact with, including other kids in school," said Dr. Maxine Hayes, state health officer and a pediatrician.
     "Getting children immunized is the best way to protect your family and other children from getting sick," she said.
     There is a new requirement for this school year involving the tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap) vaccine. Kids entering sixth grade should be vaccinated if they are 11 or older and if it has been five years since they last received a tetanus vaccine, the state advised.
     The booster shot protects older children against whooping cough (pertussis).
     Young children receive a vaccine that prevents these same diseases, but protection starts to wear off in the early teen years, according to the department.
     Kids starting kindergarten, first grade and sixth grade must get the chickenpox (varicella) vaccine or document they've had the disease, according to the department. Children 19 months to kindergarten age who attend licensed child care or preschool also must be vaccinated against chickenpox.
     Although exemptions are allowed for medical, religious or personal reasons, the best disease protection is to make sure children have all recommended immunizations, according to the department.
     Children who are not fully immunized may be excluded from attending school, preschool or child care if a disease outbreak occurs.
     Parents also should also consider the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine for teen-age girls.
     "This vaccine is not required for school admission and is available at no cost to girls under 19 in our state," according to the department. "This new vaccine gives parents the ability to protect their daughters against four types of HPV - two that cause 70 percent of cervical cancers and two that cause 90 percent of genital warts."
     Girls need three doses of the vaccine for the best protection. The HPV vaccine is recommended for girls 11-12 and girls as young as 9 if their doctors recommend it, according to the announcement.
     The vaccine also is available for females 13-26 who did not get the vaccine at a younger age.
     Health care providers can use the CHILD Profile Immunization Registry to track patient immunization history and ensure patient's vaccination records are current.
     Providers can help parents complete the necessary paperwork by printing a child's certificate of immunization status form directly from the registry, according to the announcement.
     Help in finding a health care provider or an immunization clinic is available from local health agencies, www.doh.wa.gov/LHJMap/LHJMap.htm, or the Within Reach Family Health Hotline at 1 (800) 322-2588 or www.withinreachwa.org.
     Information on required vaccines is at www.doh.wa.gov/cfh/Immunize/schools.htm. The CHILD Profile Immunization Registry, which provides information on the immunization registry program, is at www.childprofile.org.
     General health information is available at www.doh.wa.gov.