Professor Kristine Macartney, Director of the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS), and her team are working hard to help people in NSW live healthier, longer and more prosperous lives through immunisation.
While the last few years have been a great challenge for many of us, there have also been rewarding experiences, including for my team at NCIRS. Together with many public health organisations at the national, state and international levels, we have worked tirelessly to help protect people's health and wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
There's no doubt that the current challenge of living with COVID-19 and ensuring that we continue to be protected from other vaccine-preventable diseases, like influenza and measles, is a large one.
We particularly need to make sure that children and others who have missed out on crucial routine vaccines during the pandemic are now protected. Global data from UNICEF released last week revealed that 67 million children have missed out on one or more vaccinations since 2019 due to strained health systems, scarce resources and decreased confidence.
In NSW, we're lucky to have many dedicated healthcare professionals – nurses, doctors, program staff, researchers and others – all of whom contribute to delivering the state's and Australia's immunisation programs.
With the onset of winter, the current focus for our team is to continue to support the uptake of influenza and COVID-19 vaccines ahead of the 2023 flu season.
As well as providing expert advice and information to immunisation providers and the public, we publish a weekly analysis of influenza vaccine uptake to monitor levels of protection in the community.
Additionally, our AusVaxSafety team is conducting active surveillance (via a short survey) to monitor the safety of influenza vaccines, as well as many other vaccines, in near-real time. This is helping us track any potential side effects after vaccination and to ensure each new formulation of the seasonal flu vaccine continues to perform as safely as we expect it to in real-world conditions. The data, which are published online, help immunisation providers advise patients on what to expect after their flu shot.
So far in 2023, AusVaxSafety has received survey data from more than 30,000 flu vaccine recipients; 84 per cent of these experienced no side effects in the first three days after receiving the vaccine.
It's an incredibly exciting time in preventative and public health, as well as in medical research. We're seeing amazing technological and scientific advancements being applied – especially in my field, where new vaccines are being developed with a precision and pace not seen before.
At NCIRS, we have a team of more than 100 dedicated researchers, nurses, doctors and corporate support staff working across different areas of immunisation, from policy and surveillance through to clinical support. We also have an expanding global and regional focus and are supporting countries in the Indo-Pacific as they strengthen their immunisation programs.
There is so much opportunity to make an impact through what we do. I would encourage anyone seeking a career in this space to be curious and find something that really interests you – and pursue it. Get engaged, and feel confident to learn and question every step of the way.
At NCIRS and, more broadly, at NSW Health, there are a number of short-term placements and training opportunities you can consider. I urge you to explore them – you never know where it will take you!