us mums help! - kids school vaccinations

[dodgykeeper]

hi. we are about to move to Ohio (dh goes in 1 month and we follow in October) and we have just discovered that dd should have a series of hepB vaccines before she will be able to start school.All the other vaccines will be one offs so not a problem but the hepB is over 16 weeks!! Has anyone else been through this? How fussy are the schools?

The schools are fairly fussy. The first thing you have to do is see a paediatrician. She/He will go over your vaccination records - so make sure you take them with you from the UK (you should have them ready for the visa). The chances are you will be approved for school once you have started the programme, but this is not guaranteed. You should try to get the first vax here in the UK, and if you are still here, get the second one a month later.

The paed will also do a TB test, but it the children can still go to school while the results are pending.

I am in Ohio and went through this vaccination issue for my Green card. Be careful, sometimes they won't accept UK vaccinations. You could call the local US health authority which is in the county you will be living in, they would have the most accurate advice. Where are you moving to in Ohio?

Thanks for that chocchip. We have bought a house in Springboro, near Dayton. I have arranged for the kids to have the first two vacs before we go in October and am hoping for the best!

I think I only had problems with the UK vacs because they are so fussy about the Green card. We also had to have TB medication and chest x-rays (no, we didn't actually have TB). We are thinking about moving a bit more south to the Centerville area once my son finishes High School in a couple of years. Infact I'm going that way tomorrow to get my hair done. What brings you to Dayton?

Did you do your Green card medical in the UK, CCC?

if you have started on a vax series, they will be "allowed" to start school. I don't know the laws in the UK but in the US the government i.e. schools cannot force medical treatment over a parent's wishes and every child is entitled to an education. You don't have to give the hep B unless you want to and the can't stop your kids going to school for it although they mayvery well be rude. If you don't want to give a vax, ask the school for a vaccination exemption form.

Here is an info page Ohio Vaccination Exemptions

urg I get so angry that they present it as "no shots no school" which is just a flat out lie to make people do as they say! Stupid government!!

I had the medical done in the US by one of only two certified green card docs in the dayton area, one was really booked up so we went to the other and then found out why she wasn't booked up. She was hideous, really rude and disorganised but we were runnnig out of time by then. I tried to get ahead by having shots done in the UK only to find out they weren't acceptable. So my poor son was overdosed on vacs, but I had no choice at all. I found the county public medical people v. helpful, much more so than anyone associated with the green card. Personally I would go to the county for shots, they are up to date on what the schools require and it is much cheaper than going to a private doctor.

The school district we were in didn't have any problems with their UK jabs. If I can think back accurately, they started school before they had seen the paediatrician, and that was fine - there is a two week grace period in Ohio. The school counsellor even recommended the paed we should go to.

The doctor reviewed the printouts that I got from the UK Practice and wrote them herself into the school form. They needed to have the TB skin test (heaf), since we were from out of state, but I don't think the negative result ever made its way to the school. It was basically forgotten.

If the doctor in the US thinks they are short of jabs, they will give them. For example, when we moved, it was standard in the UK to have four rounds of the triple vaccine + polio, whereas in the US, they did it in five. Therefore, the doctor gave them their fifth jab.

My two eldest kids didn't need the Hep B jabs, because the requirement was for all children entering KG that year, and the younger of the two was entering first grade. Now, 8 years on, the requirement is for anyone entering up to 8th grade.

My younger three had to have the Hep B, so I had all of them done at the same time, even though it was voluntary for the older ones.

Thanks everyone for all your help! Dd has started primary 3 yesterday and really loves school; we would both go mad if she had to stay at home for five months. It's bad enough that ds has just started primary 1 and will go back to preschool! It is presented very much as no jabs no school while over here it is really easy to say no to any of the jabs with no repercussions (although obviously they are better off protected). We contacted the school but have heard nothing back - not sure if they are still on holiday though.
Chochip - dh is getting an intercompany tranfer initially for 3 years and we have the option of staying if we like it. He will be based in west carrolton so Springboro seemed like a good base. We really liked the area when we visited and fell totally in love with our new house. I am so excited now! All our stuff is about to leave and dh goes in three weeks - its all really happening!!

I doubt you will have a problem, DK. As I said, there is a grace period for sorting everything out.

IME, the school tends to listen to the local physician - and the one we had was very reasonable. There was no question of their UK jabs being not up to scratch - after all, they are made by the same manufacturers.

Just make sure you take with you an official record from your GP here.

BTW, it is normal in the US for (insured) kids to have an annual physical, where their jabs are checked, and the school medical forms signed off by the doctor.

Dear dk. Yes, the housing is great. Did you go to Dorothy Lane Market? It is my second home, went there today.