{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,14]],"date-time":"2026-01-14T04:36:11Z","timestamp":1768365371971,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":23,"publisher":"CSIRO Publishing","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,18]],"date-time":"2025-11-18T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1763424000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":517,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2024,6,19]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Despite an established humanitarian program running for many years, the health needs of refugees resettled in Australia, particularly immunisation, have not been met adequately. Under-immunisation is one of the top health issues for this population. While there is no population-level immunisation coverage data, seroprevalence studies based on small cohorts of refugees show suboptimal immunity to various vaccine-preventable diseases and lower vaccine coverage for this group than the general population. This is compounded by gaps in immunisation policy and service delivery that further perpetuate access issues and may contribute to under-immunisation. This is particularly pertinent against the backdrop of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, where there have been significant disruptions in the delivery of routine and catch-up immunisations. This paper briefly analyses the status quo and draws on the key policy considerations for enhancing the equitable provision of immunisation for refugees as recommended by the 2019 World Health Organisation technical guidance report to provide a clear, overarching direction for empirical work on immunisation service delivery for refugees in Australia.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.17061\/phrp3422414","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,6,17]],"date-time":"2024-06-17T02:27:12Z","timestamp":1718591232000},"source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Improving rates of immunisation in refugee populations in Australia"],"prefix":"10.1071","volume":"34","author":[{"given":"Abela","family":"Mahimbo","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"A School of Public Health, University of Technology Sydney, NSW, Australia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"67","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,6,19]]},"reference":[{"key":"2026011316320225800_R1","unstructured":"Department of Home Affairs. Refugee and humanitarian program. Canberra: Australian Government; 2023 [cited 2024 Feb 13]. Available from: immi.homeaffairs.gov.au\/what-we-do\/refugee-and-humanitarian-program"},{"key":"2026011316320225800_R2","unstructured":"Mahimbo A. Policies, practices, and future directions in the provision of immunisation services to newly arrived refugees in Australia (Doctoral dissertation, UNSW Sydney),2018 [cited 2024 Jan 23]. Available from: unsworks.unsw.edu.au\/entities\/publication\/054acaa1-ed00-4911-bbdc-e033d3140938"},{"key":"2026011316320225800_R3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Raman S, Wood N, Webber M, Taylor KA, Isaacs D. Matching health needs of refugee children with services: How big is the gap? Aust N Z J Public Health. 2009;33(5):466\u201370. CrossRef | PubMed","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1753-6405.2009.00431.x"},{"key":"2026011316320225800_R4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Paxton GA, Sangster KJ, Maxwell EL, McBride CR, Drewe RH. 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Med J Aust. 2006;185(11-12):594\u20137. CrossRef | PubMed","DOI":"10.5694\/j.1326-5377.2006.tb00721.x"},{"key":"2026011316320225800_R11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Kaufman J, Attwell K. Maintaining routine vaccination during the COVID-19 pandemic. Med J Aust. 2021;214(2):93. CrossRef | PubMed","DOI":"10.5694\/mja2.50919"},{"key":"2026011316320225800_R12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Mahimbo A, Kang M, Sestakova L, Smith M, Dawson A. Factors influencing refugees\u2019 willingness to accept COVID-19 vaccines in Greater Sydney: a qualitative study. Aust N Z J Public Health. 2022;46(4):502\u201310. CrossRef | PubMed","DOI":"10.1111\/1753-6405.13252"},{"key":"2026011316320225800_R13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Tuckerman J, Holland P, Kaufman J, Overmars I, Danchin M. Examining catch-up immunisation service use for migrant children in the City of Melbourne, Victoria: A quantitative study. J Paediatr Child Health. 2023;59(1):197\u20138. 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