Ireland’s national immunisation guidelines have grown from 16 to 26 chapters as vaccine policy has become more complex, with NIAC now preparing to replace PDFs with a searchable online resource.
For three decades, Ireland’s immunisation advisers have helped steer vaccine policy through a landscape that has changed dramatically, from routine childhood campaigns to the arrival of new products such as RSV and Covid-19 vaccines. Dr Edina Moylett, chair of the National Immunisation Advisory Committee, said the committee’s work has become more important as vaccine questions have grown more complex and the need for trusted advice has increased.
The Immunisation Guidelines for Ireland, first published in 1996, were designed to give healthcare professionals a clear and practical reference point. According to HIQA, the guidelines have since expanded from 16 chapters to 26, covering everything from influenza and HPV to rabies and meningitis. The committee says the chapters are updated regularly and are intended to reflect the most current evidence available, with newer chapters added as diseases and vaccine products have evolved.
HIQA said the guidelines were downloaded 30,000 times last year, while the committee also dealt with almost 100 queries from healthcare professionals. In the first six months of 2026 alone, the chapters were downloaded more than 16,000 times, according to HIQA, which underscores the continued demand for a single, authoritative source of immunisation advice.
NIAC’s roots stretch back well before the first guidelines were issued. Ireland’s vaccine programmes began in 1949 with a universal BCG infant campaign, followed by roll-outs for DTP, polio and rubella. But as uptake fell in the late 1970s and early 1980s amid public concern about the safety of the whole-cell pertussis vaccine, the need for a more trusted source of vaccine information became clearer. In 1987, the Faculty of Paediatrics and Public Health at the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland wrote to the college president recommending a vaccination and immunisation committee.
NIAC was formally established as a standing committee of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland in 1998. It has since become Ireland’s National Immunisation Technical Advisory Group, providing independent, evidence-based recommendations to the Minister for Health. HIQA says the committee became a statutory function of the authority on 31 March 2025, with a larger secretariat now supporting its work through clinical, technical and administrative staff.
The committee says its recommendations are developed using the World Health Organization’s Evidence to Recommendation Framework, a process used by national immunisation technical advisory groups around the world. Its members are nominated by professional bodies including the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland, the Royal College of Surgeons and the Irish College of General Practitioners, among others. Until the Covid-19 pandemic, NIAC’s work was carried out entirely by volunteers, but the pressure of the emergency response led to the creation of a dedicated secretariat.
The guidelines are aimed primarily at healthcare workers, but NIAC also wants them to be available to the wider public. The next stage, it says, is to move from PDF documents to a fully web-based format, making it easier for users to find information quickly. To support that transition, the committee is asking for feedback from professionals and members of the public as it tries to make its expertise more accessible in the years ahead.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
