• 2 Months - 6 in 1 Vaccine (Diphtheria, Tetanus, Whooping Cough, Hib, Polio, Hepatitis B) PCV (Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine) MenB Vaccine (Meningococcal B Vaccine) Rotavirus Oral Vaccine
• 4 Months - 6 in 1 Vaccine (Diphtheria, Tetanus, Whooping Cough, Hib, Polio, Hepatitis B) MenB Vaccine (Meningococcal B Vaccine) Rotavirus Oral Vaccine
• 6 Months -  6 in 1 Vaccine (Diphtheria, Tetanus, Whooping Cough, Hib, Polio, Hepatitis B) PCV (Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine) MenC Vaccine (Meningococcal C Vaccine)
• 12 Months - MMR (Measles Mumps Rubella) MenB Vaccine (Meningococcal B Vaccine)
• 13 Months - Hib/MenC (Haemophilus influenzae  b and Meningococcal C combined vaccine) PCV (Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine)

The chickenpox vaccine protects against the varicella zoster virus. This causes chickenpox. It’s also called the varicella vaccine. It can be given to anyone over 12 months old. Two doses of the vaccine are needed, at least 4 weeks apart.

Chickenpox vaccine is not covered under Early Childhood Vaccination programme. A prescription can be issued to pharmacy of your choice, where you will pay for both vaccines. A surgery admin fee of €50 per vaccine will apply for nurse to administer.

The HPV vaccine catch up programme is for some people age 16 or older who did not get the vaccine yet. If you are under 16 and want to get the HPV vaccine, you don’t need to do anything. You will get vaccinated through your school or HSE clinic in 2023.

You can book a HPV vaccine catch-up appointment if you are:

• Female aged 16-24 years
• Male age 16 or older who started 1^st year of secondary school, home-school or a special school between 2019-2021

To book an appointment use the following link: https://covidservices.hse.ie/Scr100?source=FA2F6C88-F089-4A69-8970-6C7C66C41BAF

Pneumococcal disease is a very serious disease. It is a major cause of illness and death, particularly amongst the very young. Those with the following conditions should be vaccinated with PPV23.                                                                                    

Everybody aged 65 years and over and everybody aged 2 years and over with:

• Diabetes
• Chronic lung, heart, liver or kidney disease
• Chronic neurological disease
• Children aged over 2 years and under 5 years of age with a history of invasive pneumococcal disease
• Coeliac disease
• Down syndrome
• Cochlear implants or are about to get cochlear implants
• Immune deficiency because of a disease or treatment, including cancer patient
• HIV infection
• Absent spleen or a non-functioning spleen
• CSF leaks, either congenital or complicating skull fractures or neurosurgery
• Intracranial shunt

PPV23 vaccination is not recommended for healthy children and adults as they are at low risk of pneumococcal disease. You need to pay for administration of the vaccine if you are a private patient.

Please read the following advice regarding the available shingles vaccines. Once you have decided which vaccine is most suitable for you, please ring our admin staff on 01 2856600 to arrange a prescription and to then make an appointment for vaccination.

A prescription will be sent to the pharmacy of your choice and an appointment will be made with one of our nurses to administer the vaccine. There is a charge of €50 for this service.

The approximate cost for each vaccine in pharmacy is as follows;

1.     Shingrix 2 dose vaccine - €240 per vaccine ( 2 vaccines required )

2.     Zostavax single dose vaccine - €210

Shingles is caused by the same virus as chickenpox – the herpes-zoster virus. Once you have the virus, it remains dormant in your body, and can be reactivated again in later life where it develops into shingles.

Shingles can be very painful and the older you are, the worse it can be. Although most people fully recover from shingles, some can be left with long-term nerve pain that continues for months or even years after the blisters and rash have healed – this is called post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN). The older you are, the higher the chance of developing PHN as a result of shingles.

There are 2 Shingles Vaccines available in Ireland:

SHINGRIX - a recombinant vaccine called Shingrix ( 2 doses given, 2 months apart)

Studies have shown that four months after two doses of the Shingrix vaccine that its efficacy at preventing shingles was as follows:

• Aged 50 to 69 years 100%
• Aged 70 to 79 years 93%
• Aged 80 years and older 71%

Common side effects:

• Very common: headache, stomach and digestive complaints (including nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and/or stomach pain), muscle pain (myalgia), pain, redness and swelling where the injection is given, feeling tired, chills, fever

• Common: itching where the injection is given (pruritus), generally feeling unwell

• Uncommon: swollen glands in the neck, armpit or groin, joint pain

ZOSTAVAX - a live vaccine (given as one dose)

Studies have shown that three months after one dose of the Zostavax vaccine that its efficacy at preventing shingles was as follows:

• Aged 50 to 59 years 70%
• Aged 60 to 69 years 64%
• Aged 60 to 79 years 41%
• Aged 80 years and older 41% at 5 years

Common side effects:

• Very common: redness, pain, swelling, itching at the injection site

• Common: warmth, bruising, rash, and a hard lump at the injection site. Headache, pain in the arm or leg, joint pain, muscle pain and fever

• Less common reactions include nausea, swollen glands at the neck or armpits, hives at the injection site

• Very rare: varicella (chickenpox)

• If you do get shingles, the vaccine can also help reduce the severity of the symptoms and also the risk of developing post herpetic neuralgia (PHN), the long-lasting nerve pain that follows shingles.

Who is suitable for the shingles vaccination?

Both Shingrix and Zostavax can be given to people aged 50 or over.

Shingrix can in addition be given to people aged 18 to 49 years who are at increased risk of getting shingles. You can get the vaccination year-round. If you’ve had shingles before, you can still have the vaccination provided it's been over one year since you have had shingles.

Shingrix may be given at the same time as COVID-19 vaccines, inactivated seasonal influenza vaccine, pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23) or Tdap vaccine. The vaccines should be administered at different injection sites.

Zostavax may be administered at the same time, or at any interval from, influenza or pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine. An interval of at least seven days should be observed between Zostavax and COVID-19 vaccine. This is because an inflammatory response to COVID-19 vaccine could interfere with the immune response to Zostavax.

Who should NOT get the shingles vaccine?

The shingles vaccine is not recommended if pregnant. If breastfeeding talk to your doctor to check if getting the vaccine at this time.

You shouldn’t get the shingles vaccine if you have a history of severe allergic reaction to any of the shingles vaccine components (See link to further information at end )

The live shingles vaccine is also not recommended for those who have an underlying condition, take medicines or are receiving treatment that weakens their immune system or anyone who’s had a previous shingles vaccination.

If you have had shingles, you should wait 12 months before you have a vaccine.

If you are unsure which vaccine is suitable for you, please make an appointment to discuss with GP.