Manchester parents warned over MMR jabs and Victorian disease surge – we can’t go back to the past
Parents are being urged to take action amidst a national surge in ‘Victorian diseases’ including Measles.
Manchester’s health chiefs are pleading with families ‘not to go back to the past’ and take advantage of free vaccinations.
Fears are growing around low vaccine rates following the tragic death of a child in Liverpool from measles. Shocking statistics show Manchester is one of 22 places in the country where MMR vaccination rates have dropped below 75 per cent.
“We can’t go back to the past for the future,” said Dr Cordelle Ofori, Manchester’s Director of Public Health.
“In Manchester we want everyone to have the chance to have as much protection as possible and take up our free vaccinations offer.”
Just 74.6 per cent of five year olds in the city had had their second jab in 2023/24, the latest year for which figures are available.
Measles cases in the city have luckily remained relatively low. But the disease, which can last over a week, is highly contagious and can spread quickly from person to person.
Health officials are urging people to contact GP offices for vaccination appointments to help protect those most vulnerable to the disease, such as babies too young to be vaccinated.
Councillor Thomas Robinson, Manchester City Council’s Executive Member for Healthy Manchester and Adult Social Care, added: “It’s never too late to come forward for the MMR vaccination – and if you do not know if you or your family have had it, please ask your GP. Where there is no record of having had the vaccinations, it is better to have them to be on the safe side.”
Dr Ofori, who worked as a GP before joining the council, noted that ‘trust in vaccinations has declined’ since the pandemic, which saw speculation and misinformation about vaccines widely circulated online.
“We’re seeing more people feeling wary of vaccines,” Dr Ofori said. “I also think people are less motivated to get the vaccines because they haven’t seen the severity of those illnesses.
“There’s now a generation of people who up until recently have never seen a child with measles, or how serious it can be – how it can cause serious chest infections, pneumonia, swelling of the brain, fitting. A child can end up needing intensive care.”
The local authority is also warning parents to keep a look out for symptoms of Hepatitis A, Typhoid and Measles during the school holidays.
Symptoms of Hepatitis A include kids feeling hot and tired; sick; yellow eyes or skin; dark urine; and a sore tummy.
Typhoid symptoms are feeling hot; headaches, sore muscles and loose stools or constipation.
And those for measles include a runny nose; sneezing and coughing; red, sore eyes; feeling hot; and having red-brown spots on the skin. The measles rash can look very different depending on your skin colour.