only 10% of fifth graders have been vaccinated so far

The vaccination campaign against papillomaviruses is slipping. Launched at the start of the school year, it is still far from the objectives stated by the government at this stage. Only 10% of fifth grade students have received the first dose of vaccine against these viruses, according to the first provisional figures obtained Thursday February 8 by AFP. The expected objective for this first edition of the campaign was at least 30% of fifth grade students vaccinated, according to the Ministry of Health at the beginning of September.

“According to partial reports from regional health agencies, at least 92,262 students were vaccinated in colleges as of December 23, 2023”, specified the General Directorate of Health. Questioned on the subject in November by AFP, former Minister of Health Aurélien Rousseau acknowledged that the objective would probably not be met, while hoping that 150,000 fifth grade students could be vaccinated this year.

A “heavy” organization

At the beginning of January, officials from the French Society of Colposcopy and Cervicovaginal Pathology (SFCPCV) estimated that this vaccination was far from expectations, with a first glimpse “disappointing”. For the SFCPCV, the campaign suffered, among other things, from an administrative organization “a little heavy and complicated”.

Thanks to the information and communication campaign deployed since September by the National Cancer Institute, “it is possible that the vaccination operation proposed at the college will result in an increase in vaccinations in the city”judged the Directorate General of Health.

A first estimate of the total number of students vaccinated for the first dose will be made during the first quarter of 2024, and the full results of this first year of the campaign will not be known until the end of the school year.