Compulsory vaccinations in France

[nappyaddict]

Is it just the DTP that is compulsory for starting school?

Can you get a letter of exemption based on either medical, philosophical or religious reasons?

If you refuse to have them do you have to home educate and do they provide tuition for this or not?

ASD is not something which officially exists. I suspected an ex charge had Aspergers - am not trained to spot it, wouldn't presume to diagnose but from previous experience he seemed to tick a lot if boxes. It wasn't ever considered as a possibility, my boss wouldn't even acknowledge the possibility it existed despite my offering her articles about behaviour management strategies for kids with AS (as a 'let's try this approach' not 'i think your child has AS'). She just right out rejected the syndrome's existence.

Also DH's youngest aunt is autistic and his grandparents have done everything over the years, some of it horrifically barbaric, but it's mostly been psychoanalysis based (despite the fact she's non-verbal).

There are brilliant, enlightened, top-of-the-list doctors in many specialisms here induing some specialisms where you wouldn't necessarily associate progressive and French medicine. The field of autism isn't one of them...

Offcially exists is possibly a bad way of phrasing it - it's not something for which allowances are made and that people are aware of or consider as a 'real' disorder.

Jenpet, where does your Parisian friend live? I only ask because DD is autistic and has actually had very good, specialist treatment in France (better than we'd get in the UK, I think) but it as mainly been through some of the excellent parents associations that now exist. There are some in the 78,92 and 77, at least, and if she's in any of those areas I could send you details to pass on to her, if that would be any help. That's how we found out who we SHOULD be dealing with!

Hi BriocheDoree they're not far from Charenton le Pont, which I think is 94 but may be wrong. It's kind of you to offer, and I'm delighted to hear of something positive happening. Hope your DD continues to benefit

This thread has sent chills down my spine (until reading BD's last post, more positive)

I had horrible arguements with DH's family (Christmas Eve dinner of all places)about getting the Swine Flu vaccination while pregnant. They accused me of scare mongering, thinking I knew better than the medical profession (even though all of my care providers during pregnancy were very ambivalent about me getting vaccinated) and being downright irresponsible when the only way to deal with the threat of a pandemic was to get vaccinated.

And these are normally very enlightened reasonable people, one is a pharmacist and another a nurse...

If I even voiced some of the issues raised on this thread I would considered mad (or madder than I am already considered)

BriocheDoree Did you go private or is all healthcare private in France and covered by an insurance scheme like in the US?

We moved in Nov 2006 with dd who was just 9. She had bcg before we moved, had to go privately in Mcr as in Cheshire where we lived couldn't get it for love nor money. Found out after that in wasn't required any more in Correze. She hasn't had mmr, but so far, she's now in quatrieme, we haven't had any complaints.

It's just as well, she's got a thing about injections since a nurse at the gp's pounced on her when she was fussing a bit when she was 3, and wasn't getting on my knee as quickly as the harridan would have liked.

Nappyaddict, it's complicated! For some things, social security pays 70% and your top-up insurance (which we have through DH's work) pays the other 30%. DD has a special status whereby anything relating to her autism is covered 100% by social security. However, not EVERYTHING is covered by social security. Speech therapy IS, so we have weekly speech therapy which is, effectively, free, as is her weekly behavioural optometry. However, her weekly psychologist is NOT free because it's not covered by social security, but we get an allowance called AEEH (Allocation d'Education de l'Enfant Handicapé) which covers expenses such as psychologist and also, in part, compensates me for not being able to work full-time. The highest amount you can get per month is 1200 euros (we don't get anything like this much but our expenses are more or less covered). Someone I know whose son is in ABA school is slightly out of pocket as school fees are a bit more than 1200 per month. We are lucky that DD's school place is funded by National Education (including her 1-2-1, because she's shared between 4 kids).
There is another allowance called PCH (prestation de compensation du handicap) which you can receive for more severe disabilities and if you get that it's worth more and also gives you tax breaks, etc. However, DD is nowhere near severe enough to receive that so I've never really looked into it.

Brioche, our dd is seeing a psychologist through the CMPP, would they be able to help you? It's free, you just have to show your carte vitale at the first appointment.

Yeah, we saw a CMPP for a while. We were pleased to part company.
Don't get me wrong, some of the people there were good, like the Montessori educator DD saw, or the psychomotricien, but the pedopsy?!? He was a nutcase. Tried to psychoanalyse DD. Kept acting like it was weird that she didn't speak to him (hello?!? she's autistic. It's N E U R O L O G I C A L, not psychological).
Anyway, we do it all in liberale now because we spent a lot of time finding people in France who actually knew what they were talking about.
I'm not knocking the CMPP - they do some good work, but like many previous posters have said, some of them are LIGHTYEARS behind the rest of the world with regards to autism!

BTW Jenpet, I'm sorry, I don't know anything about the 94. However, hopefully your friend knows the good websites like Leo et Samy, Autisme Infantile, Aidera? They should all be able to provide useful contacts and help.

Do you think CMPP is the same as CMPE, that's who my DS is being looked after by. I was quite sceptical at first but he actually seems to be coming on very well with them. However, the first psych that showed up at school was just dreadful and I had to leave the meeting because he was so full of crap and I was getting more and more cross with him.

Even DS gets a bit sick of them trying to psychoanalyse him all the time, he says, but mum all they do is ask pourquoi all the time.

We have had years of being passed from piller to post in France with people not seeming to know what to do with an a child with high functioning autism and a hell of a lot of them are far too keen to blame autism on bad parenting. The amount of times I've had to say it's neurological not psychological. I do say a French Educational Psychologist is a waste of a good education.

For the time being I'm happy but I'd like to see how they're going to plan on progressing from here.

CMPP = Centre Médicaux-Pédo-Psychiatrique
CMPE = Centre médicaux psychologique des enfants et adolescents.

NOT the same thing at all. You are far better off with a CMPE!

Sorry to ressurect an old thread but am looking for information on compulsory vaccinations in France - my DS1's enrollment form for EABJM (he got in! But DS2 didn't but that's a whole different thread ) lists BCG and scarlet fever in the compulsory vaccinations list... As far as I can tell scarlet fever is not immunised against in the UK, but cannot see anything on it being vaccinated against in France - what are your experiences?

And BCG - I think that's only vaccinated against in the UK between the ages of 10 and 14 so I guess that's not an issue given that he's almost 5!

Thanks in advance for any help! Nappyaddict - so sorry to hear about your son - I had encephalitis at the ripe old age of 29, but have been very lucky with no lasting physiological effects...

BCG is not compulsory, although encouraged.
Scarlatine? How odd, quite sure my kids weren't vaccinated for this.

Thanks winnybella - do you know what age they have the BCG?

The Scarlatine mystery continues ...

BCG- either at birth or...wait, I'll have a look in DD's carnet de sante.

Right-at birth or before 6. It says in carnet de sante that it's reserved for children living in areas at arisk and is obligatory for pre-school and school- but I know for a fact that it is not. That has changed fairly recently so maybe that's why it's not included in the info in c d s . OTOH I know that DS (9) had to have a TB test at 3 yo (but no vac) and DD (2) doesn't have to have anything- it is not obligatory (we're in Paris).

Scarlatine is not in carnet de sante as either obligatory or recommended one, so no clue where they got that from

Oh, wait, just googled and scarlatine vaccine doesn't exist!

here

Scroll down to the list of obligatory vaccinations for primary school-no BCG or non existant scarlatine vac (and it's a government site so I would trust that).

Very interesting Winnybella - Thanks! It seems that BCG is being phased out in a number of countries... It's no longer routine in the UK post-2005 I think.

Think I will print that link...otherwise I'll never find it again! Thanks again for your help!