Your care in pregnancy at Kingston Maternity
There are certain vaccinations offered to you during your pregnancy which help protect you and your baby. Vaccines can help prevent disease or make the illness less serious. Antibodies developed while you are pregnant pass to your unborn baby and help to protect them in their first few months of life.
Vaccine Information for Pregnant Women – in multiple languages
Which vaccines will I be offered during my pregnancy?
All year round vaccine
Whooping cough vaccine (Pertussis)
RSV vaccine (Respiratory Syncytial Virus)
Whooping cough is a highly infectious disease that can be very serious for babies under one year of age. Most young babies with whooping cough will need to be admitted to hospital.
Whooping cough can cause long bursts of coughing and choking making it hard to breathe, and commonly lasts for two to three months. For young babies it can lead to pneumonia and permanent brain damage. In the worst cases it can be fatal.
You can have a vaccine to protect your baby from the 16th week of pregnancy, or after your mid pregnancy scan at around 20 weeks. Your body will produce antibodies to whooping cough which are passed through the placenta to your baby. Your baby then has some protection from whooping cough until he or she receives their own vaccines at 8 weeks old.
The combination vaccine (Adacel) also contains tetanus and diptheria which are also part of your baby’s vaccination programme from 8 weeks.
The best time to have the vaccine is from 16/20 weeks of pregnancy up to 32 weeks. You can still have the vaccine in later pregnancy, but it may not be as effective.
Vaccines are available most weekdays in the antenatal clinic at Kingston Maternity Unit. To check availability please call the admin team on 0208 934 2290. Pre-booking is not necessary, and vaccines are available on a walk-in basis when the immunisations team are in clinic. Please call on the day to check the clinic is running if you are coming in especially.
RSV is very common. Almost all children get it at least once before they are 2 years old.
It is not usually serious, but some babies and older adults have a higher risk of becoming seriously ill.
Respiratory syncytial virus or RSV is a common virus which can cause a lung infection called bronchiolitis. In small babies this condition can make it hard to breathe and to feed.
Most cases can be managed at home but around 20,000 infants are admitted to hospital with bronchiolitis each year in England. Infants with severe bronchiolitis may need intensive care and the infection can be fatal. RSV is more likely to be serious in very young babies, those born prematurely, and those with conditions that affect their heart, breathing or immune system.
RSV infections can occur all year round, but cases peak every winter.
Having an RSV vaccine in week 28 or within a few weeks of this will help you build a good level of antibodies to pass on to your baby before birth. This will give your baby the best protection, including if they are born early. You can still have the vaccine later in your pregnancy but it may be less effective. If it wasn’t possible to have your vaccine earlier, it can be given right up until you have the baby. If you have it very late in pregnancy, it may still protect you from infection and reduce the risk of you spreading infection to your newborn baby.
Vaccines are available most weekdays in the antenatal clinic at Kingston Maternity Unit. To check availability please call the admin team on 0208 934 2290. Pre-booking is not necessary, and vaccines are available on a walk-in basis when the immunisations team are in clinic. Please call on the day to check the clinic is running if you are coming in especially.
Seasonal Influenza (Flu) vaccine
Flu is a highly infectious disease with symptoms such as fever, chills, aches and pains in the joints and muscles, headaches and extreme tiredness.
Flu is more serious in pregnancy because your immune system is naturally weakened making you less able to fight off infections. As your baby grows you can’t breathe as deeply, increasing the risk of infections such as pneumonia. Together, these changes can increase the risk for pregnant women, especially during late pregnancy and if there are other risk factors such as diabetes.
Flu vaccination is available from the end of September to the following March. It is free for pregnant women and is safe to have at any time in pregnancy.
Further information on having the flu jab during pregnancy.
Flu vaccine is available most weekdays from September to March in the antenatal clinic at Kingston Maternity Unit. To check availability please call the admin team on 0208 934 2290. Pre-booking is not necessary and vaccines are available on a walk in basis when the immunisations team are in clinic. . Please call on the day to check the clinic is running if you are coming in especially.
Flu vaccine Information leaflet
Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine
A COVID-19 booster has been offered during pregnancy for the last two winter seasons, in 2022 and 2023. It is not yet confirmed if or when the booster will be offered during pregnancy for the winter 2024/2025 season. (as of July 2024)
If and when a booster is offered, if you’re pregnant, it’s important to get vaccinated against COVID-19 to protect you and your baby. The antibodies your body produces in response to the vaccine can also give your baby protection against COVID-19. You’re at higher risk of getting seriously ill from COVID-19 if you’re pregnant and evidence shows that most pregnant women with COVID-19 who need hospital treatment or intensive care in the UK have not been vaccinated.
The COVID-19 vaccine can be taken at the same time as the flu vaccine giving you good protection for the winter months.
It’s safe to have the vaccine during any stage of pregnancy, from the first few weeks up to your expected due date.
There’s no evidence COVID-19 vaccination increases the risk of having a miscarriage, pre-term birth or other complications in your pregnancy. The COVID-19 vaccines do not contain any live viruses and cannot give you or your baby COVID-19.