Dear Sir or Madam,

what are the ingredients in the vaccinations currently offered by
the NHS?

Yours faithfully,

daizi jones

Thank you for your email.

Where a reply is appropriate we aim to send one within 20 working days.

If your enquiry is about a medical matter, please contact NHS Direct on
0845 4647 or visit [1]NHS Choices, or contact your GP surgery.

For the latest information about swine flu, please visit [2]NHS Choices or
call the swine flu helpline on 0800 151 3513.

For general health information you may also find it helpful to refer to
[3]Directgov, the UK Government's Official information website, or the
Department of Health website's [4]Frequently Asked Questions.

show quoted sections

Communications via the GSi may be automatically logged, monitored and/or
recorded for legal purposes.

References

Visible links
1. http://www.nhs.uk/
2. http://www.nhs.uk/
3. http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/index.htm
4. http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/FAQ/index.htm

Dear Daizi Jones,

Thank you for your email requesting information under the Freedom of
Information Act. We will be responding to this formally.

Vaccinations are offered by the NHS either routinely (for example, to all
infants aged 2 months) or according to specific criteria. It would help us
answer your request if you can say whether you are interested in
information about (a) routine childhood vaccinations or (b) all
vaccinations that may be offered free by the NHS.

I should add that some non-routine vaccinations are not offered
unconditionally by the NHS because charges apply (for example, some travel
vaccinations). We will therefore limit our response to free vaccinations
unless you say that you want to include all vaccinations that may be
offered, whether or not that is conditional on payment.

Information about NHS vaccines is published on the internet. Searching for
this will take two steps. First, you can use resources at
www.immunisation.nhs,uk to identify the name of a vaccine. Second, you can
look up the ingredients of that product at http://emc.medicines.org.uk
However, we will be responding formally to your request.

Yours sincerely,

Tony Meredith

Immunisation Branch
Department of Health
Wellington House (Room 504)
133-155 Waterloo Road
London SE1 8UG

show quoted sections

Dear Tony,

many thanks for your reply. I'm sorry I wasn't very clear. I am
interested primarily in vaccines offered to all children, from
early childhood.

thanks,

daizi

Our ref: DE00000425629

1 July 2009

Dear Ms Jones
Thank you for your email of 28 June asking, under the Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA), what are the ingredients in the vaccinations
currently offered by the NHS. You have also clarified that you are
interested in childhood vaccinations currently offered by the NHS.
I can confirm that the Department does hold information relevant to your
request. This information falls into two parts, firstly information about
the vaccines currently offered by the NHS, and secondly information about
the ingredients of those vaccines. Both parts are information that is in
the public domain. We are therefore able to refer you directly to this
information under the provisions of Section 21 of the FOIA (information
accessible to applicant by other means).
Information about vaccines offered by the NHS is published on the
internet. In order to obtain information about the ingredients of a
specific vaccine you will need to identify it by its name (for example,
Pediacel). In order to assist you, I attach a copy of the list of named
vaccines used in routine childhood immunisations.
In addition to these routine vaccinations, there are targeted at-risk
vaccinations against other infectious diseases: hepatitis B, tuberculosis,
seasonal influenza and varicella. This information is more complex, but it
is reasonably accessible. The names of vaccines offered by the NHS are
listed at the end of each relevant chapter of the `Green Book'
Immunisation against infectious diseases (2006 edition and updates) which
is available at [1]www.dh.gov.uk (search for `green book'). These chapters
also give details of the criteria for immunisation against hepatitis B,
tuberculosis, seasonal influenza and varicella. Alternatively, the names
of vaccines (including non-NHS vaccines) can be found at [2]www.bnf.org by
searching alphabetically for each disease and then selecting `vaccines'
(registration is required for this website).
Information about the ingredients of vaccines (and other medicines) is
published at [3]http://emc.medicines.org.uk . You should search for the
named vaccine and then find its ingredients in the Summary of Product
Characteristics (SPC).
I hope that this is helpful. If you are dissatisfied with the handling of
your request, you have the right to ask for an internal review. Internal
review requests should be submitted within two months of the date of
receipt of the response to your original letter and should be addressed
to:

Head of the Freedom of Information Team
Department of Health
Room 317
Richmond House
79 Whitehall
London
SW1A 2NS

Email: [4][email address]
If you are not content with the outcome of your complaint, you may apply
directly to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) for a decision.
Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the
complaints procedure provided by the Department. The ICO can be contacted
at:
Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Yours sincerely,

Colin McDonald
FOI Casework Advisor
Department of Health

show quoted sections

Communications via the GSi may be automatically logged, monitored and/or
recorded for legal purposes.

References

Visible links
1. http://www.dh.gov.uk/
2. http://www.bnf.org/
3. http://emc.medicines.org.uk/
4. mailto:[email address]

Dear Sir or Madam,

thank you for the links. May I therefore assume that there is
currently no easy to access information, such as a leaflet, on
offer generally (for example to parents' who wish to give their
informed consent)?

Yours faithfully,

daizi jones

Our ref: DE00000427189

Dear Ms Jones,

Thank you for your further email of 2 July about NHS vaccinations.

Comprehensive information about childhood vaccinations is available on the
NHS Immunisation website at: www.immunisation.nhs.uk

I hope this reply is helpful.

Yours sincerely,

Colin McDonald
FOI Casework Advisor
Department of Health

show quoted sections

Communications via the GSi may be automatically logged, monitored and/or
recorded for legal purposes.