When you are a parent, you can do anything to protect your child and keep them safe and healthy. Vaccines are the vital way to do that. For neonates, mother’s breast milk can help protect against many diseases. It contains antibodies passed from the mother. However, this immunity wears off within a year, and many children aren’t breastfed to begin with. In both cases, vaccines can help protect babies and small children from diseases. They can also help prevent the spread of diseases to older children and adults. Vaccines emulate infection of a certain disease in your body. This boosts up your immune system to develop weapons called antibodies. These antibodies fight against the disease that the vaccine is meant to prevent. With the help of them in your immune system, your body can defeat any future infection with the disease. The following immunization schedule can be used to prevent the diseases:
| Age (Completed Weeks/Months/Years) | Vaccines | Remarks |
| Birth | BCG OPV 0 Hep-B 1 |
Administer these vaccines to all newborns before hospital discharge |
| 6 weeks | DPT 1 IPV 1 Hep-B 2 Hib 1 Rotavirus 1 PCV 1 |
DPT: DPT vaccine/combinations should preferably be avoided for the primary series. It should be preferred in certain specific circumstances/conditions only and there is no need to repeat.
Polio: All doses of IPV may be replaced with OPV if administration of the former is unfeasible. Two doses of IPV instead of 3 for primary series if started at 8 weeks, and 8 weeks interval between the doses. Rotavirus: 2 doses of RV1 and 3 doses of RV5 & RV 116E RV1 should be employed in 10 & 14 week schedule,10 & 14 week schedule of RV1 is found to be more immunogenic than 6 & 10 week schedule |
| 10 weeks | DPT 2 IPV 2 Hib 2 Rotavirus 2 PCV 2 |
Rotavirus: If RV1 is chosen, the first dose should be given at 10 weeks. |
| 14 weeks | DPT 3 IPV 3 Hib 3 Rotavirus 3 PCV 3 |
Rotavirus: Only 2 doses of RV1 are recommended. If RV1 is chosen, the 2nd dose should be given at 14 weeks. |
| 6 months | OPV 1 Hep-B 3 |
Hepatitis-B: The final (3rd or 4th ) dose in the HepB vaccine series should be given no earlier than age 24 weeks and at least 16 weeks after the first dose. |
| 9 months | OPV 2 MMR-1 |
MMR: Measles-containing vaccine ideally should not be given before completing 270 days or 9 months of life;The 2nd dose must follow in 2nd year of life & there is no need to give stand-alone measles vaccine |
| 10 months | Typhoid | An interval of at least 4 weeks with the MMR vaccine should be maintained while administering this vaccine |
| 15 months | MMR 2 | MMR: The 2nd dose must follow in 2nd year of life. However, it can be given at anytime 4-8 weeks after the 1st dose. |
| 16 to 17 months | Chickenpox | |
| 18 months | DPT B1/DTaP B1 IPV B1 Hib B1 Hep-A 2 |
The first booster (4th dose) may be given as early as age 12 months, provided at least 6 months have elapsed since the 3rd dose. |
| 2 years | Typhoid Booster | For those when primary dose used below 2 years. |
| 41/2 – 5 years | DPT MMR 3 |
MMR: the 3rd dose is recommended at 4-6 years of age. |
| 10 to 12 years | Tdap/Td HPV |
Tdap: is preferred to Td followed by Td every 10 years. HPV:Only 2 doses of either of the two HPV vaccines for adolescent girls aged 9-14 years; |
