Booster campaign is no incentive for parents

doi:10.1136/bmj.326.7404.1460-b

BMJ 2003;326:1460 (28 June), doi:10.1136/bmj.326.7404.1460-b

Letter

Booster campaign is no incentive for parents

The first 100% of the full text of this article appears below.

EDITOR—A slip of paper from the district immunisation coordinator arrived on the same day as the BMJ of 31 May, inwhich Heath and Ramsay describe the booster campaign for Haemophilus influenzae type b vaccine.¹ The slip of paper stated thatan appointment had been made for my son at the general practitioner'ssurgery to receive "additional HIB vaccine. Be wise—immunise."

The district immunisation coordinator and the Department ofHealth will have to do better than this if they want theircurrent catch up campaign to be anything other than a failure.The current climate around vaccination means that few parentswill take their children for vaccinations unless they fully understand the need for them.

J G Daniels, specialist registrar in paediatrics

Homerton Hospital, London E9 6SR justin.daniels@virgin.net

Competing interests: None declared.