Parents should first have their children fully vaccinated before admission to any child development center (CDC) of the city government of Baguio.
According to Councilor Betty Lourdes Tabanda, the city council has approved on first reading the proposal seeking to put into place a policy requiring that only fully vaccinated children shall be admitted to these CDCs operated by the city government.
A CDC is the venue for the early learning program and the family support program under the City Social Welfare and Development Office. It accepts children aged three to 4.11.
The CDC program is a community-based flagship program under the Early Childhood Care and Development Council whose primary objective is to nurture the physical and mental development of the child. A social worker serves as the service provider of the CDC.
“This proposal seeks to encourage parents to have their infants and children receive the mandatory vaccines against preventable diseases according to protocol in order to protect their children from infection and prevent the spread of infection to other children,” Tabanda wrote.
According to Republic Act 10153 or the Mandatory Infants and Children Health Immunization Act of 2011, mandatory basic immunization covers vaccine-preventable diseases such as tuberculosis; diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis; poliomyelitis; measles; mumps; rubella or german measles; hepatitis-B; influenza type B; and other types as may be determined by the Secretary of Health.
Tabanda said vaccination gives protection not only to the vaccinated but also to the people around them, especially the vulnerable groups.
“Immunization boosts the infant’s or the child’s immune system and greatly reduces the severity of the disease. It protects the body from serious complications that have debilitating and fatal effects,” she said.
The councilor said despite the free mandatory basic immunization given by government hospitals or health centers to infants up to five years old, there may still be infants and children who have not received the immunization shots for whatever reason or belief.
Under the proposed ordinance, the city social worker, as the service provider of the CDC, shall be mandated to require the parent/guardian of the child to present the child immunization record or vaccination card/report upon enrollment.
Should the parent/guardian fail to present any, or was able to present one but it reflects an incomplete record of vaccines received by the child according to protocol, the daycare worker shall advise the parent/guardian to execute an undertaking to have the child vaccinated or complete the vaccine requirements. The proposed ordinance has been referred to the city council’s committee on health and sanitation, ecology, and environmental protection for review. – Jordan G. Habbiling
