Schools and immunisations

[sweetpea1602]

Hi, neither of my children have been immunised and I am wondering if they would be allowed to attend a French school, because I have seen on other sites that they need to provide their immunisation certificates when they attend school. Can anyone help? Thanks

[giantpanda]

Hi!

Here a French timetable.

http://www.linternaute.com/femmes/sa...9vaccins.shtml

As regards school, see here:

Vaccinations obligatoires à l'école - Encyclopédie de l'éducation - E-tud.com

Here the ones which are compulsory, plus the ones recommended.:

Aujourd'hui les maladies dont la vaccination est obligatoire à l'école sont les suivantes : la diphtérie, le tétanos, la poliomyélite et la tuberculose. D'autres sont vaccins sont vivement recommandées comme le ROR, contre la rougeole, les oreillons et la rubéole, et celui contre l'hépatite B pour les adolescents.


See also:

Il est précisé que "l'absence de vaccinations obligatoires justifie le refus d'inscription dans un établissement d'enseignement scolaire et d'éducation public ou privé (ou l'exclusion de l'enfant inscrit )."
Dans le cas d'un refus de vaccination par les parents, la responsabilité du directeur par rapport aux autres enfants de l'école est engagée. En acceptant un enfant non vacciné dans son école, il prend le risque d'une diffusion de certaines maladies (tuberculose, etc...).

The school director can refuse to register.
He is responsible towards the other children.

So best would be to contact your "médecin traitant " and have those done, which are necessary.

Yours,

giantpanda

[sweetpea1602]

So, in other words unless the director of the school accepts the children without immunisations they wont be able to get in.

[giantpanda]

Originally Posted by sweetpea1602

So, in other words unless the director of the school accepts the children without immunisations they wont be able to get in.

Hi!

Admitting he has not forgotten to ask for it......

Yours,

giantpanda

[Bevdeforges]

I take it that you're American. If you're moving to France, you need to get used to the idea that the schools here do not defer to parental preferences the way they do in the US. Children must be immunized to attend school for the protection of the other children. You can't just say you "don't want" them immunized.

There are a number of things that work like that in France. It's always difficult at first for Americans who are used to all the various opt-outs.
Cheers,
Bev

[giantpanda]

Originally Posted by Bevdeforges

There are a number of things that work like that in France. It's always difficult at first for Americans who are used to all the various opt-outs.
Cheers,
Bev

Hi!

This applies nearly to everything. In other countries, they do things differently than they do in your home country.
You tend to think is is simple. Just send a moment on the outlook of Expats to your home country - They think matter are complicated.

So you have generally forget how things were done, and start anew, in this case in France.

Yours,

giantpanda

PS. Nothing about talking how other countries do some things. But in contact with the French admininstration, best is to avoid this, they definetly are no interested, and you are wasting everybodies time.

[sweetpea1602]

I find the reply by Bev very judgemental, actually I am not American and the fact that you thought I was I find very disappointing, your reply was nothing about the immunisation question but about the fact that I may have the audacity NOT to have my children immunised. Actually, if you check I believe it is also compulsory in American to have immunisations unless on grounds such as religion. Whatever happened to FREE CHOICE. Shame some people are so blinkered and prejudiced, if I was American reading your reply I would be highly insulted! Get over yourself.

[Bevdeforges]

Sweetpea, sorry if you found my reply to be judgmental. I've lived here in France for quite some time now, and I've run into a number of "sticking points" between the US and French cultures - issues that seem to cause particular grief to many American expats. One of those is the question of "personal options" concerning the school system - which includes the issues of immunizations and parental preferences regarding what topics are covered in the schools, what books are assigned for reading and a parent's ability to take their child out of school for a family trip.

The US system is based on local control of schools and school issues, including a much greater latitude on matters affecting what the Americans consider to be "personal choice." The French system is highly centralized and does not allow for parental options on these (and other) issues. It is considered to be a matter of societal rights and equality and not one of personal choice.

I honestly don't care whether you have you children immunized or not or why you choose to do so or not do so. But if you come to France, you don't have that right to choose. As they say of so many things, better to know before you go. I also spent far too many years in France flailing against "injustices" and outrages I had no control over. It may seem unfair (as it did to me) but it's simply how it is in France. Knowing what the situation is and accepting it before you move can save you many months or years of unhappiness. That was my only intent.
Cheers,
Bev

[synthia]

sweetpea, I am judgmental about people who don't get their children immunized. Most parents today have not seen the diseases that immunizations protect against, and think of them as mild and innocuous. They aren't. Children die from diseases like measles and chicken pox. As long as you stay in a country where most people have been immunized, it is safe to not have your children immunized, but if you live in a big city, or your children will someday travel to countries without general immunization, immunization is critical. Some diseases, like mumps, are much more serious in adults. Right now you are thinking about France, but if they should ever want to travel to, say, Cambodia or an African country, they will be wise to get all the immunizations before they go.

All Bev did was tell you what the policies in France are. If you find the idea of her assuming that you are American so offensive, perhaps you should have identified your home country. When we don't get sufficient information, it makes it much more difficult. I'm going to make an assumption, too, that you are from the UK, where many more parents don't have their children innoculated.

All of which is beside the point, as you are going to have to have your children innoculated if they are to attend school in France.

If you are going to react so strongly to such an innocuous post, I'm afraid you are going to have a difficult time adjusting to a new culture.

[sweetpea1602]

Synthia, I'm completely uninterested in your opinions regarding vaccinations. My decisions are based on significant research.

Having spent plenty of time in France with my parents (who have lived in France for nearly 10 years), we are completely confident of adjusting to a new culture and one that we are already used to.

Again, just to reiterate, read my original post, I don't want your opinion on immunisations, this forum isn't for that. As a moderator I'd advise you to keep your opinions unbiased and leave personal issues aside and use the expat forum for what it is meant for. I asked a simple question, I don't want a discussion about whether my decision not to immunise my children is right or wrong.