Measles: Mid Ulster councillors united in call to encourage uptake of MMR vaccine

The notice of motion, tabled by Councillor Denise Johnston (SDLP, Moyola DEA) at last Thursday’s full council meeting, was worded as follows: “We note with concern a death in the Republic due to measles and the increase in England and Wales of the disease, and we emphasise the importance of having children up to date with MMR vaccinations.

“This council will undertake a public information and education campaign via print and social media, to highlight to parents and guardians the importance of MMR vaccinations.”

Presenting her motion, the SDLP representative commented: “Europe is experiencing an alarming rise in measles cases. In the last year, 42,200 cases – up from 941 in 2022.

“This could be somewhat attributed to a decreased vaccination coverage during the Covid-19 pandemic 2020 – 2022.

“There is also startling news coming out of England in terms of the spread of measles. The UK Health Security Agency has declared a national incident last month. This national incident is the aftermath of a surge in cases and low vaccine uptake.

“That declaration is an internal mechanism signalling the growing public health risks, and to enable the agency to focus on limiting further spread of the outbreak.

“Three quarters of the cases reported in the UK are in the West Midlands. Closer to home, there is now a confirmed case in the North, our first case of measles in seven years.

“Unfortunately there has also been a death in the South. I don’t need to tell you that measles is highly infectious, even more so than Covid and flu, as it has an infection rate of 1.15.

“And just to remind people of the symptoms of measles, a high fever, a red or brown rash, coughing and sneezing. It can also leave eyes sore, red and watery.

“The illness normally clears within seven to 10 days. In worst cases, once infected it can result in swelling of the brain, meningitis, seizures, blindness, pneumonia, and as we’ve just highlighted, death. It spreads very easily among those who are unvaccinated.

“During the Covid pandemic, I think that we as a society felt some relief in the fact that Covid didn’t have the same devastating impact on children. This is not the case with measles.

“Children are more susceptible. In fact the biggest risk is to children, and there are serious concerns regarding a potential outbreak in a school or nursery setting.

“Pregnant women and people with weak immunity are also at an increased risk of complications from measles.

“I don’t mean to sound alarmist here, but I do feel it is incumbent upon local government to play their part in highlighting the issue. We must make people aware of the dangers, the symptoms, the preventative measures and how to access them.

“The World Health Organisation are encouraging those in authority to consider risk communication and awareness-raising initiatives, and the Public Health Agency are running an MMR catch-up campaign targeting people from 12 months to 25 years old.

“I believe it’s essential that our council promote and encourage uptake of the vaccines.

“Historically we had a high rate of uptake, but sadly that has fallen to 85%. And while that may seem high, in order to prevent outbreaks it needs to be at 95%.

“Raising awareness of the importance of vaccination in this regard is really important. We need a long-term, concerted effort to protect individuals and to prevent large measles outbreaks.

“I hope that all members in this chamber can support my call which would see the council play a role in raising awareness, and ensuring that factual information is published via social media in particular.

“In closing, the message is clear. The best way for parents to protect their children from measles is the MMR vaccine. Two doses of the MMR vaccine give lifelong protection and it’s never too late to catch up.”

Councillor Malachy Quinn (SDLP, Torrent DEA) seconded the notice of motion, adding: “10 or 20 years ago, MMR was just taken as standard. Everybody got it. Not a problem. We’ve moved on, unfortunately, over the last couple of years since Covid.

“We obviously have the ones that missed it during Covid, but we now have a rising number of people who think it’s a fantastic job to declare themselves as antivax, and that’s taking in a wide range of vaccines.

“It might look great on a Facebook status, but it’s children’s lives you’re putting at risk. It’s not just your own children, it’s everybody else they’ve been in contact with.

“Such a vital message that everybody used to understand. Especially when it comes to the MMR vaccine, it’s so important for you to have it.”

Councillor Wesley Brown (DUP, Magherafelt DEA) praised Cllr Johnston for tabling the motion: “It’s a very worthwhile motion. Most people in this room have families and want to make sure that they’re properly protected by vaccines.

“So anything that we as a council can do [should be doone]. And I know the councillor mentioned social media to promote that we want people to get an uptake of the MMR vaccine.

“This is to be welcomed, and therefore, we as a party will be fully supporting the motion that’s brought by the councillor.

“I think it’s very worthwhile to try and get the uptake increased. And as the councillor mentioned maybe it was through the pandemic that people didn’t go and get vaccinations. But we should be encouraging [them] where possible because at the end of the day, we don’t know when this could be arriving at our door or one of our family members.”

Councillor Trevor Wilson (UUP, Cookstown) stressed just how serious measles is as a medical condition.

“Measles is a highly contagious and serious viral infection, with complications including meningitis and hearing loss. It is the most infectious of all diseases transmitted through the respiratory route.

“Unlike many other infections, it spreads through coughing and sneezing. Measles can be very severe, particularly in immunosuppressed individuals, and young infants, and serious complications are more common in children under the age of five.

"Just because cases have been very rare until recently, and there has been no cases in Northern Ireland since 2017, until last week.

“The impact on children can sometimes be totally life-changing.

“Across the UK there was a very worrying increase in measles cases last year, and in particular since October. While numbers have since stabilised in some parts, it would appear that cases are still increasing elsewhere. While Northern Ireland had reported no cases, that changed this week.

“The most effective way to control measles is by achieving a high uptake of two doses of vaccine. Unfortunately, however, over the last 10 years, the uptake of the MMR vaccination has been steadily falling in Northern Ireland.

“It is widely accepted that due to the falling uptake of the MMR vaccine over several years, the risk of measles cases in Northern Ireland is considered moderate to high.

“The most effective way to stop more cases from emerging and contain the wider spread of imported cases, is to ensure the greater proportion of the population possible is vaccinated with the two doses of MMR. It is important that we as a council play our part and promote this vaccine as much as we possibly can.

“And yes, there are people who raise concerns about the vaccine, but the fact is that the MMR vaccine is safe and has been used extensively since 1980. We’re happy to support the motion.”

Councillor Deirdre Varsany (Sinn Féin, Dungannon DEA) mentioned the case of a child who lost her hearing because of measles.

“When I was teaching, I taught a little girl, a beautiful little girl,” she said. “She had been made deaf because her mother had got measles when she was pregnant with her.

“So it’s not just a danger to those that are already born, it can be very dangerous for babies in the womb as well. So it’s something that we all just need to be very careful about.

“We also have a very young population in our area, huge numbers of school-going children. So I think overall we’d like to commend the motion.”

Council Chairman, councillor Dominic Molloy (Sinn Féin, Dungannon DEA) brought the debate to a conclusion, stating: “There was concern around MMR a number of years back, but scientific tests have already disproven those concerns. I think we’ve got a consensus around the room.”