New RSV immunisation programme at UMHL from this weekend to protect newborn babies
Friday 30th August, 2024 ¦ ACUTE and community health service leads in the Mid West are urging parents to immunise their newborn babies against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) when the new programme is rolled out at University Maternity Hospital Limerick (UMHL) from this weekend.
In UMHL and maternity units across the country, the new monoclonal antibody immunisation will be offered to babies born between Sunday September 1st, 2024 and Friday February 28th, 2025, a time of the highest circulation of RSV, which can infect one in two newborn babies, and result in the hospitalisation of the most severely impacted of these infants.
RSV is a common virus that causes respiratory infections in young babies. The risk of severe infection is highest in the youngest babies, especially those born during the RSV season. Dr Mugahid Ibrahim, Consultant and Head of Neonatalogy at UMHL, urged parents of newborns to take up the offer, in view of the high numbers babies who are hospitalised due to RSV during the winter months.
“Every winter, one in two newborn babies will get RSV, with many of them requiring medical care from their GP or in an emergency department. Four out of a hundred newborns are hospitalised due to RSV, with some needing special treatment in intensive care units. This new programme will protect babies immediately after birth as it is being offered free of charge to all newborns in every maternity hospital in Ireland before they are discharged home. I would urge parents of all babies born in this period to take up the offer when the programme begins on September 1st,” Dr Ibrahim said.
Dr Kenneth Beatty, Consultant in Public Health Medicine, Public Health HSE Mid West, said the immunisation – nirsevimab – is strongly recommended by the HSE and the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC), for all infants born in Ireland and has been approved by the European Medicines Agency. Nirsevimab starts working as soon as the baby receives the injection and protects against RSV for 150 days, covering the very early period in a baby’s life when they are most vulnerable to serious RSV related illness.
“This is a timely and essential programme for all new mothers and parents to protect their babies against RSV this winter season. This immunisation will protect your child ahead of an imminent RSV wave, and it will also reduce negative impact on paediatric and childcare services during what will likely be another busy winter period for our health service. RSV can be extremely serious in newborn babies, and we want to make sure that every child has the best start to life this winter,” Dr Beatty said.
As well as protecting young babies against serious illness, the RSV immunisation programme will help safeguard vital hospital paediatric services during the very busy winter months by limiting preventable admissions caused by RSV-related illness. Based on evidence from a similar programme implemented in Spain, it is estimated that the infant RSV programme in Ireland will lead to the avoidance of up to 453 hospitalisations and up to 48 ICU admissions.
The new programme is initially being rolled out as a ‘path finder’ initiative, which is designed to explore and establish innovative approaches to improving health outcomes within a community or population. Such programmes often serve as pilots or models that can be scaled up and replicated in other settings.
Further information on the HSE RSV immunisation programme is available at: