According to a new report, many Kentucky schools, including those in Clark County, fall short of meeting statewide objectives for immunizations.

The annual report on student immunizations comes from the Department for Public Health and shows Kentucky students are generally not getting the required number of vaccines, which can open schools to increased risks of outbreaks of illnesses and disease.

The report reveals Clark County did not meet the Healthy People 2020 objective of 95 percent or greater kindergartners having received four or more DTaP, three or more polio, three or more hep B, two MMR, two varicella and 85 percent or greater for Hep A or the objectives of 80 percent or greater of seventh, 11th and 12th graders having received the Tdap/Td and meningococcal booster, 85 percent or greater for hep A, 90 percent tor greater for varicella and 95 percent or greater for hep B and MMR.

Hepatitis A vaccines rates were lowest in the state with only one county, Hickman, meeting the 85 percent objective of high school students with the hep A vaccine.

The situation with hep A and that vaccine serves as a primary example of why school districts must be more vigilant about making sure students are up-to-date on their vaccinations.

Kentucky is experiencing the worst outbreak of Hep A in the country, with nearly 5,000 cases and 61 deaths.

This outbreak prompted the state to require hepatitis A vaccination for the current school year.

These vaccines protect our young people from the potentially fatal illness, and other vaccines do the same.

As importantly, vaccinations create what is called “herd immunity” which protects those individuals who are not able to be vaccinated for medical reasons.

Some can’t get vaccinations because their immune systems are too weak to allow them to get shots, or because they are too young.

It also protects the small number of students who opt not to be vaccinated for religious or other exemptions.

“Herd immunity is established between 92 to 95 percent, reducing the likelihood of an infectious transmission.

“However, to reach a critical vaccination level for herd immunity and disease eradication, 95 percent vaccination levels must be achieved.”

According to the report, high immunization rates are “particularly difficult” to maintain “as populations become more sophisticated and more likely to question recommendations.

Unless direct communication about the social benefits of vaccinations is relayed to parents, there will continue to be increases in ‘free-ride’ or reliance on herd immunity to avoid vaccination within school settings.

Therefore, more education needs to be provided to parents about the public health impacts vaccinations have within schools, especially for the protection of vulnerable students who are immunocompromised.”

The report also offers some recommendations for that can help improve the rates of vaccinations and, thus, protect more children:

— School district administrators should use the report to assess district vaccination compliance and identify at-risk schools for the potential of vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks.

— School administrators can also use this report to adapt policies and procedures for school enrollment to require documentation of vaccination compliance before the first day of school.

They can implement protocols for school nurses and other identified personnel to enroll as Kentucky Immunization Registry (KYIR) users to view and print current immunization certificates to be filed as part of students’ educational records.

— School nurses can use this report to promote the importance of immunizations to parents.

School personnel can also share information about immunizations cwith parents who are vaccine-hesitant or do not understand the adverse public health implications of low compliance for recommended immunizations on the school and community.

This report can also help to promote back-to-school vaccination clinics and partnerships with providers and public health to increase vaccination compliance in low coverage rate counties.

— Providers can use this report to evaluate their practices for childhood vaccination compliance, especially in low coverage rate areas.

Further, it is recommended that all providers enroll in the KYIR and enter historical immunization data in addition to new vaccine doses administered to create a single, current immunization certificate for each child.

— Public health officials can also use this report to implement strategies to promote vaccinations for the entire community and promote back-to-school immunization clinics.

Public health officials can collaborate with district school administrators and area providers to create vaccination awareness campaigns.

These campaigns would educate the public about the implications low vaccination coverage rates can have within vulnerable communities.

Parents should be more vigilant about ensuring their children are up to date on their vaccinations and in line with what the school district requires.

School districts across the state should adopt new ways to track students who are not up to date on vaccinations and to encourage families to get the required shots.

Additionally, we should have more public education about the benefits of vaccinations for those who receive the shots and those who cannot.

Editorials represent the opinion of the newspaper’s editorial board. The board is comprised of publisher Michael Caldwell and Bluegrass Newsmedia editors Whitney Leggett and Ben Kleppinger. To inquire about a meeting with the board, contact Caldwell at 759-0095.