Keeping Samoa protected through routine immunization for every generation

Situated at the Ministry of Health headquarters in Moto’otua, the national immunization clinic is already open and buzzing with activity by 9:00am. Parents arrive with their child's health book, with babies swaddled in blankets, as they wait for their turn. For many, this clinic marks a familiar rhythm in family life, one that begins just days after a child is born.

Samoa’s routine immunization programme is built around protecting children during their earliest and most vulnerable stages of life. From birth, infants receive vaccines that shield them from serious, preventable diseases, forming the foundation of long‑term health.

According to Teuila Pati, Immunization Coordinator at the Ministry of Health, the national programme provides protection against vaccine-preventable diseases and follows people throughout every stage of life.

“It’s very important that people bring in their children to have their immunizations when they’re infants and also during school and as well as when they’re older for booster doses,” Teuila explained.

Vaccination begins at birth, with infants receiving protection against hepatitis B and tuberculosis. In the first months of life, babies are brought back at six and ten weeks to receive routine vaccines, including oral rotavirus vaccines to prevent severe diarrhoeal disease, combination vaccines that protect against multiple infections such as tetanus, diphtheria, whooping cough, hepatitis B and polio, and pneumococcal vaccines that help prevent pneumonia and serious bacterial infections. At fourteen weeks, children receive follow‑up doses to strengthen this early protection. Additional vaccines are given at one year and fifteen months, including protection against measles, mumps and rubella, typhoid, and further booster doses to support immunity as children grow.

^{Posters of the routine immunization schedule in Samoa displayed at the immunization clinic. © WHO / Faizza Tanggol}

“These are very important vaccines to give to children on time,” Teuila explains. “They’re very vulnerable, their immunity has not developed, and vaccines help boost their immunity at this time of their lives.”

For Elena Inoke, a mother of three from Fale’ula, bringing her six‑week‑old baby boy Ioane to the clinic was a natural step. Elena shared that she brought baby Ioane to the clinic because of her previous experience with her two other children during the measles outbreak. She indicated that vaccines “protect them from those diseases and plus to keep the baby healthy.”

^{Elena visits the immunization clinic to ensure her 6-week-old baby boy Ioane gets his scheduled vaccines. © WHO / Faizza Tanggol}

Elena describes the visit as simple and manageable. “I don’t find it difficult or complicated. It was really easy,” she noted, explaining how she was able to fit the appointment into her morning routine. A primary school teacher, Elena is currently on leave after giving birth, which made it easier for her to attend her baby’s scheduled vaccination.

Recognizing that not all parents can attend appointments during the work week, the national immunization clinic also operates a Saturday schedule from 9:00am to 1:00pm, allowing families and working adults to access services on the weekend. The flexibility helps ensure that routine immunization remains accessible across different life circumstances.

While childhood vaccines remain the core of the programme, immunization in Samoa extends well beyond the early years. At age ten, girls are offered the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, which protects against cervical cancer later in life. Seasonal influenza vaccines are available annually, targeted for health workers but also available to the public. Additionally, booster doses of some vaccines are offered to adults, including those travelling overseas or needing renewed protection.

“So we try and cover the whole lifespan,” Teuila shared. “It’s not just focusing on the children.”

^{Ahead of her church mission, 21‑year‑old Rhodagreene comes in for her booster vaccinations. © WHO / Faizza Tanggol}

From the clinic floor, health workers see firsthand the impact of vaccination at both individual and community levels. Carrie Tamalelagi, a Nurse in Charge at the clinic, describes immunization as one of the most effective tools in public health.

“Vaccination remains one of the most powerful and effective ways to protect our health,” Carrie explained. “When we choose to get vaccinated, we're not only trying to protect ourselves, our own health, but to protect the people around you, your family, your friends, your children, the elderly, and the entire community, especially the most vulnerable ones, people and children with weaker immune systems.”

As we observe this year’s World Immunization Week, with the theme “For every generation, vaccines work,” the steady flow of babies, parents, and adults through the national immunization clinic reflects that message in practice. From a child’s first vaccines to protection later in life, routine immunization continues to support healthier futures across generations in Samoa.

^{Nurse in Charge Carrie Tamalelagi registers immunization patients in the electronic medical record system. © WHO / Faizza Tanggol}