Immunisations in the fifth year of life: a report from the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Child Development Study.

Of a sample of 988 Dunedin children whose mothers were interviewed after the children's fifth birthday, 7.4 percent had not received a combined diphtheria and tetanus booster and 10.6 percent had not received a rubella immunisation. Only 57.9 percent of mothers gave a correct answer to a question about why rubella immunisations are necessary, 17.0 percent gave a partially correct answer, and 25.1 percent were unable to answer the question correctly. There were no significant associations between immunisation status and maternal education level, socioeconomic status, or knowledge of the need for rubella immunisation in this sample. Knowledge of the need for immunisation was significantly associated with maternal educational background and socio-economic status. Strong and positive action to ensure greater immunisation coverage, such as suggested by Shannon and co-workers, is supported.