Vaccination

Children aged six months to under five years with disability, complex or multiple health conditions that increase the risk of severe illness, are now eligible to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

This is a significant step forward in the fight to protect the children and young people in your care against COVID-19 infection.

SA Health has produced a Frequently Asked Questions resource to help answer queries you may have about the new vaccination program.

If the child you care for has an underlying medical condition, or an acute illness or infection, we encourage you to discuss vaccination with their treating doctor or specialist, as well as your case worker.

The department’s position is that all eligible children and young people (unless medically contraindicated) should have access to and receive the COVID-19 vaccination. The department gives its consent for all children and young people under guardianship of the Chief Executive to be vaccinated if they are eligible.

Young people over the age of 16 years can make decisions about their own medical treatment. To help them make an informed choice about vaccinations, case workers and carers should ensure young people have access to age-appropriate information about being vaccinated.

Isolation requirements

The need to isolate, if you test positive for COVID-19, ended on 14 October. As always, we remind you to visit the SA Health website for the latest health advice.

Face to face visits

Wherever possible, home visits and family contact arrangements are continuing as per usual.

DCP and agency staff follow COVID-19 safe measures, including the wearing of masks and hand hygiene. All DCP staff and support agency staff visiting carers, children and young people are required to be fully vaccinated.

Where to get support

If you, or the child or young person in your care, tests positive to COVID-19 please let your DCP case worker and/or support agency know. If you need to go to hospital and are a single carer household, please contact your support agency who will work with you while other care arrangements are made.

The Women’s and Children’s Hospital COVIDKids service is a dedicated virtual service providing specialist support for children and young people who test positive to COVID-19.