PETALING JAYA: Making more data available will give parents confidence to register their children for vaccination ahead of schools reopening.
Greater accessibility and transparency of information will help parents do what’s best for their child, said Melaka Action Group for Parents in Education (Magpie) chairman Mak Chee Kin.
“Many are still worried about how the Covid-19 vaccines may affect their children.
Data speaks: (From left) Mak, Noor Azimah, Prof Zarina, Prof Zamberi and Wang.
“Some parents are anxious about the side effects, so we should make all available data accessible to assure them,” he said.
There are 2.32 million students aged between 12 and 17 enrolled in national schools nationwide.
Schools in states that have entered Phases Two and Three of the National Recovery Plan are set to reopen in stages on Oct 3, with vaccination of teenagers slated to start from mid-September.
As of Tuesday, 1.9 million individuals under the age of 18 have registered for the vaccination on MySejahtera.
Parent Action Group for Education Malaysia chairman Datin Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim stressed that parents must be given clear information and supporting evidence about the benefits of the vaccination programme for children.
She, however, noted that vaccination of adults should be a priority.
“We must advocate for all teachers and school support staff to be vaccinated.
“Teachers who are not vaccinated must take the extra precautions to prevent their students from getting infected.
“To vaccinate students is not a priority until herd immunity is achieved among adults,” she said.
Noor Azimah said parents must be assured that unvaccinated teachers adhere to strict standard operating procedure (SOP) including taking weekly swab tests and donning a face mask and face shield at all times.
An English teacher from Subang Jaya, who wants to be known only as Vijay, questioned the need for face-to-face learning to resume as the number of cases is still high and students cannot be forced to be vaccinated.
“As a parent of two school-going children, I do not feel it is safe to expose students to the danger of Covid-19, especially when our medical facilities are overwhelmed.
“Let online lessons continue until the country’s Covid-19 numbers drop and the situation stabilises.
“Education is not a race. Knowledge can be imparted and learnt anywhere. Being home is the safest option for now,” he said.
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Faculty of Medicine senior consultant paediatrician Prof Dr Zarina Abdul Latiff said educational campaigns to raise awareness on the need for Covid-19 vaccination for children were necessary to alleviate anxiety among parents.
“The Health Ministry (MOH) has already drawn up formalised clinical guidelines for vaccination of adolescents aged 12 to 17 for the reference of healthcare professionals.
“These professionals, too, have outlined the precautions and need for pre-vaccination assessment in certain groups of children and monitoring of possible side effects following the vaccination.”
She said epidemiological data globally and in Malaysia had shown an increase in the number of children infected with Covid-19.
Based on the Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre data in April this year, Prof Zarina said the number of paediatric cases had risen from fewer than 10% at the end of 2020 to 15.3% among those below age 18.
“Children constitute 25% of the Malaysian population; because of this and also the increase in paediatric cases, there is a need to protect them.
“The risk for severe infection is reported to be greater, too, for children with existing chronic illnesses (as with adults), thus this group of children should be prioritised,” she explained.
Examples of these chronic illnesses, she said, include chronic cardiorespiratory diseases, diabetes and immunosuppression.
Children receive various vaccinations to prevent serious morbidity from childhood illnesses as per the National Immunisation Schedule and as such, parents should similarly acknowledge the importance of the Covid-19 vaccination in the face of the pandemic, she said.
“Efficacy and safety of the proposed Covid-19 vaccine by the MOH have been reported in large randomised control trials among those aged 16 and above.
“This same vaccine is also well tolerated among those aged 12 to 15.
“As with any other non-Covid-19 vaccines, there may be children who experience pain at the injection site, fever, muscle pain, mild headache and so on, post-vaccination.
“But what needs to be emphasised is that vaccination benefits greatly outweigh the risks,” Prof Zarina said.
Infectious disease expert Prof Dr Zamberi Sekawi said based on the data available from other countries, serious side effects among vaccinated children were rare.
The Universiti Putra Malaysia consultant clinical microbiologist and Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences dean said the government, however, had a duty to give parents precautions.
“This is because there have been cases of adolescents who experienced myocarditis after taking vaccines.
“However, serious reactions to vaccines among children and teenagers are uncommon,” said Prof Zamberi.
The National Union of the Teaching Profession (NUTP) is urging its 220,000 members to get vaccinated to help keep the pandemic out of schools “for the sake of education”.
“Teachers cannot be forced to get vaccinated but we can give them counselling and advice to accept the vaccines for their safety and also the safety of others,” said NUTP secretary-general Wang Heng Suan.
The safety of students, teachers and school staff must be ensured, he said, adding that SOP must be improved before schools reopen.
