Children and adolescents

*for children who have not had chickenpox
**for children who have not had chickenpox and who have received the first dose when aged under 6 years
***for children who have not had chickenpox and who have received the first dose at the age of 6 to 11 years 

• The timing of different vaccinations is carefully considered to maximise the protection against the diseases in question. Many of the diseases and their potential sequelae are more dangerous for younger children.  For this reason, certain vaccines are administered to infants at only a few months of age.
• Many vaccines require multiple doses or booster shots to ensure that the body develops sufficient immunity against the disease. The immunity that is developed is usually long-lasting, sometimes even lifelong.
• People who are in a risk group for a given disease due to an underlying condition or life situation are offered an expanded immunisation schedule. Those in risk groups are offered vaccinations against diseases such as tuberculosis, seasonal influenza, pneumococcal diseases, tick-borne encephalitis and different types of hepatitis.
• The vaccination coverage of Finnish children is high. Nearly all Finnish children receive all of the vaccinations included in the National Immunisation Programme. This also helps provide protection to those children who cannot be vaccinated due to a medical condition, for example.
• Children who miss out on vaccinations that are normally administered at child health clinics can later supplement their immunisations via school health care or student health care.
• The high vaccination coverage and the National Immunisation Programme have almost entirely eradicated the MMR diseases from Finland. The numbers of tetanus, diphtheria and Hib cases are also down to a small fraction of what they were before vaccinations began.
• It is important to keep in mind that additional protection may be necessary when travelling abroad. Even in Europe, there are certain countries that may warrant Hepatitis A vaccination, for example. Vaccinations that are not included in the National Immunisation Programme are subject to a charge. They are available from health centres and private medical centres.

Further reading

• THL, Immunisation: Vaccination programme for children and adults 
• THL, Immunisation: Vaccination coverage of children (in Finnish)
• THL, Immunisation: Vaccinations of risk groups (in Finnish)
• THL, Vaccination guide for young children (in Finnish)