Northern Ireland

‘Please don’t put the MMR vaccine off’ - Parents in Northern Ireland urged to vaccinate their children as measles cases spread

Uptake rates for the jab to protect against measles remain high in Northern Ireland but have dropped in other countries
The Public Health Agency has started a catch up campaign for children and adults up to 25 who missed out on their MMR vaccine first time around.
By Allan Preston

PARENTS in Northern Ireland have been urged to get their children vaccinated to combat a growing threat of measles across the UK and Europe.

Following “a worrying drop” in the uptake of the Mumps, Measles and Rubella (MMR) vaccine in recent years, the Public Health Agency has said that from Tuesday the first and second doses will be offered to all those between the ages of 12-25 who missed out first time around.

Running until March 31, those who have never received any doses of MMR vaccine are advised to book early to allow one month between dose one and two.

Louise Flanagan, Consultant in Public Health at the PHA, warned that parents could not become complacent against protecting their children from preventable diseases.

“As a whole the childhood vaccination programme has been a success, with Northern Ireland traditionally having uptake rates above the UK average, which is why we have seen very few cases of illnesses such as measles compared with the rest of the UK,” she said.

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“However, some vaccines have seen a decline in uptake in recent years, which risks a return of some of the diseases that they offer protection against.

“The diseases that these vaccines protect against can be life-changing and even deadly.

“No parent wants this for their child especially when these diseases are easily preventable.”

She assured the families that the vaccine was proven to be safe and had been in use since the early 1980s.

“Please don’t put the MMR vaccine off, check now that your children are fully up to date with their MMR. Check your child’s red book and get in touch with your GP practice if you are not sure.”

The latest figures from the PHA show that in Northern Ireland, 88.8% of the population had received their first dose of MMR at two years of age, with 85.4% receiving their second dose of MMR when reported at five years of age.

This still means that Northern Ireland falls below the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation that at least 95% of children should be fully vaccinated for diseases to prevent further outbreaks, a statistic Ms Flanagan called “particularly worrying”.

Increased measle cases have been reported in England while WHO has warned of a 30-fold increase of cases in Europe.

The PHA say that two doses of the MMR vaccine remains the best protection against measles, mumps and rubella.

MMR vaccination remains free in Northern Ireland, with the first does offered when a child is one-year-old and the second when they are three-years-old and four-months-old.

Receiving both doses also provides for a longer lasting protection.

For the new catch-up vaccination campaign for those who missed out first time around, children between 12 months and five-years-old can get their vaccine through their GP practice.

Those between six and 25-years-old can attend an HSC Trust vaccination clinic.

Information on Trust clinics can be found online at this location www.nidirect.gov.uk/mmr

Adults up to the age of 25 who are unsure if they are fully-vaccinated should contact their GP surgery to check.

Further information is also available at www.nidirect.gov.uk/mmr