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From Dec. 27, 2021, the Ministry of Health (MOH) will be progressively offering Covid-19 vaccination to over 300,000 children aged five to 11.
The programme is open to all Singapore citizens, permanent residents, and long-term pass holders.
Registration for vaccination appointments will take place in two prongs:
- Parents or guardians of students studying in MOE primary schools and Madrasahs will receive a unique link via SMS to book an appointment.
- Parents or guardians of other students can register their interest through the National Appointment System (NAS) at child.vaccine.gov.sg.
Here are some questions you may have about the exercise, answered in an FAQ by MOH.
1. What should parents or guardians bring or take note of when bringing their child or ward for vaccination?
- Bring your child or ward’s student ID, or if not available, other forms of identification (e.g. passport, birth certificate) for verification purposes.
- Parents or guardians who have registered through the NAS are also required to sign the consent form and bring along a hardcopy or softcopy. The consent form can be found on the NAS.
- Children 12 and below will need to be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
- For children who are accompanied by adults other than child’s parent or guardian, they will need to produce a parental authorisation form. This can be downloaded when booking the vaccination appointment.
- Ensure that the child is is hydrated, has eaten, and avoids strenuous exercise. Children are encouraged to wear short-sleeved or loose clothes for their appointment.
2. What if you do not get your SMS invitation?
The invitation will be sent out at different times for different age bands.
- Primary 4 to 6 students (in 2022): Progressively from Dec. 22
- Primary 1 to 3 students (in 2022): Progressively from Jan. 3
Parents or guardians of children in MOE primary schools and Madrasahs who did not receive the SMS invite, or who have experienced technical difficulties with the unique link, should register your child or ward on the NAS when this opens up for the age band of your child.
The schedule for this is:
- From Dec. 27, 2021 for those born in 2009 to 2012
- From the week of Jan. 10, 2022 for those five and above.
MOE and ECDA will announce the confirmed date for the opening of this final phase of registration in early January 2022.
Those who have registered via the NAS should expect to receive their SMS invitation within three to five working days.
If you do not receive your invitation after five working days, call the MOH hotline at 1800-333-9999 or resubmit your registration on the NAS.
For children attending SPED schools and EIPIC centres, the institutions will share the registration instructions and guidelines with the parents or guardians separately.
3. Why are children aged nine to 11 prioritised for vaccination?
MOH is starting with the older school-going children in hopes of allowing them to be able to have more larger group activities, as well as CCAs and competitive sports.
The ministry explained that they will need to "take extra care in the initial period" before ramping up capacity.
There is also a need to ensure that there are sufficient medical personnel trained in paediatric care, and staff who are experienced in administering vaccination for younger children.
Additionally, the community VCs (vaccination centres) have to cater enough space for the accompanying parent or guardian of the child, while still providing space for the on-going vaccination booster programme, which is being accelerated.
MOH assures parents that the difference is "a matter of just a few weeks".
4. If a household has a few children of different ages, will their appointment dates be the same?
Parents are advised to observe the timings for booking of an appointment for the various tranches and age bands, and to turn up based on the appointment dates and timing.
This is especially important for the initial phase of this paediatric vaccination exercise, MOH said, as it make it more manageable for the vaccination centre staff and also ensure a more pleasant experience for those who are scheduled.
4. Will Safe Management Measures(SMMs) in preschools or MOE kindergartens or schools change after the vaccination exercise is completed?
The vaccine is effective in preventing symptomatic disease for the vast majority of those vaccinated, but it is still possible for vaccinated individuals to get infected as no vaccines are 100 per cent effective, MOH said.
Therefore, there will still be a need to retain some SMMs in schools even after the vaccination exercise is completed.
However, there will be greater scope for MOH to calibrate some of these SMMs to allow a wider range of school or student activities, taking into account the prevailing national posture.
More FAQs on child vaccinations can be found here.
Top image via Chan Chun Sing's Facebook page