O’Shea Welcomes FREE HPV Catch-Up Vaccination Programme for Students across Cork & Kerry

Fine Gael TD for Cork North West, John Paul O’Shea, has welcomed the rollout of free HPV catch-up vaccinations for secondary school students who missed their vaccine in first year.

HSE South West vaccination teams will visit post-primary schools across Cork and Kerry to offer the vaccine to eligible students in second, third, fourth and fifth year through the Laura Brennan HPV Catch-up Vaccination Programme.

Deputy O’Shea said: “This is a very welcome opportunity for young people across Cork North West who missed their HPV vaccination to get protected against HPV-related cancers.

“Whether your child attends school in Mallow, Kanturk, Boherbue, Charleville, Millstreet, Macroom or elsewhere across the constituency, I would encourage families to look out for information from their school and consider taking up this important opportunity.

“This programme is open to both boys and girls who have not previously received an HPV vaccine. Raising awareness that HPV can cause cancers in both men and women is particularly important.”

The catch-up programme is available to students in second to fifth year who have not received any HPV vaccination. Home-educated young people and students attending special schools born between 1 September 2007 and 31 August 2012 are also eligible.

Parents or guardians must provide consent for eligible students aged 15 and under, while young people aged 16 and over can consent themselves. HSE vaccination teams will work directly with schools to provide information and arrange vaccination.

Deputy O’Shea continued: “More than 2,000 young people nationally have already received a vaccine through the first phase of the school catch-up programme. This latest rollout will give more families the chance to avail of protection that their children may previously have missed.

“The programme also continues the remarkable legacy of Laura Brennan, whose courage and advocacy helped transform public awareness of HPV vaccination. Ensuring more young people can access the vaccine is a fitting tribute to her work.

“I want to thank the HSE South West vaccination teams and school communities for supporting this rollout across Cork North West.”

The routine first-year school vaccination programme will continue as normal. Families can find further information about HPV vaccination and how to access the programme at HSE.ie⁠.