PhD Thesis - ResearchSpace@Auckland - The University of Auckland

16, found that 88 per cent were Schick negative (immune to diphtheria). As the
Department was hoping to achieve 70 per cent coverage this was a pleasing figure. 64 It
also demonstrated that most parents were receptive to immunisation and did take their
children to complete the required number of injections despite Health Department
fears.
The BCG campaign was low-key in comparison to diphtheria; departmental
instructions for publicity stated that ‘its initial stages, other than the customary press
statement in local newspapers of the commencement of work in the area, consist of
little more than the individual distribution of a pamphlet entitled,
Tuberculosis Series - Vaccination against Tuberculosis. 65 Health magazine also
published two articles on BCG in the mid-1950s intended to inform readers of the
reasons for administering both the vaccine and the preliminary Mantoux skin test. 66
The differences in the types of campaigns adopted by the Department at this point can
be accounted for by considering the intended recipients. BCG was aimed purely at
schoolchildren and therefore only required parents to sign a consent form. Diphtheria,
however, required parents to bring a small child to a clinic for immunisations, hence,
much more parental effort was required to achieve the desired end. Consequently,
diphtheria immunisation needed to be more heavily promoted to reach the intended
recipients and persuade them it was worth the effort involved.
Information to, and education of, parents assumed increasing importance in the
immunisation campaigns of the 1940s and 1950s. Very little information was
provided earlier in the century to parents as the Department did not perceive it was
necessary. Additionally, the Department assumed, rightly in most cases, that it would
be dealing with the mother who would be responsible for signing forms and bringing
children in for immunisations. This certainly coloured the Department’s perception of
how promotional material, such as posters and pamphlets, should look and influenced
what they contained. The initial letter regarding diphtheria immunisation was sent out
when the child was either six months or one year old and was always addressed to the
mother. The Medical Officer of Health for Timaru, G. L. McLeod, commented
64
AJHR, 1957, H-31, p.16.
65
‘Immunization against Tuberculosis’, undated, H-NA 478 BCG General Policy - Napier, ANZ,
Wellington.
66
Health, June 1954, p.7, March 1956, pp.4-5.
107