Parents in Portsmouth urged to get children vaccinated against measles as uptake nationally drops to lowest level in a decade

Public Health Portsmouth has issued a plea to arrange appointments with GPs ‘as soon as possible’ as the latest figures show 9.2 per cent of eligible five-year-olds in the area have yet to receive the necessary two jabs against measles, mumps and rubella.

The data released by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) also revealed 96.3 per cent of five-year-olds had one dose of the MMR vaccine by 2020/21, down from 96.7 per cent in 2016/17.

But 94.3 per cent of two-year-olds had one dose by 2020/21, up from 93.8 per cent in 2016/17.

Emma Seria-Walker, consultant in public health at Portsmouth City Council said: ‘The MMR vaccine offers the best protection from measles, mumps, and rubella - diseases which can cause death and other serious health issues, spreading readily among communities, infecting those who have not been vaccinated.

‘I'd encourage any parents who may have delayed finding out about the MMR jab and booking to get their child vaccinated because they didn’t want to burden their GP during the pandemic, or for any other reason, to get in touch with their GP as soon as possible to arrange their child's MMR vaccination.

‘It's concerning to hear that many parents still don't always realise how serious it can be if their child catches one of these diseases and isn't vaccinated.’

It comes as MMR vaccine uptake in England dropped to its lowest level for a decade during the pandemic, with the UKHSA warning ‘measles is still circulating and remains potentially harmful.’

The figures showed in England 90.35 per cent of two-year-olds had one dose by 2020/21, down from 91.6 per cent in 206/17.

Some 94.3 per cent of five-year-olds had one dose, down from 95.0 per cent in 2016/17, and just 86.6 per cent had both doses - down from 87.6 per cent in 2016/1.

Ms Seria-Walker added: ‘Even if a parent or carer has missed their child's appointment, or it's been a long time since they had the invite letter, it's never too late to get the MMR jab. It doesn’t have to be done at the usual two year and five year points - they just need to contact their GP practice to arrange as soon as possible.

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‘Even if a child recently had coronavirus, they can get their MMR jab as soon as they are recovered - at the end of their isolation period and well enough to attend for a vaccination. And they can have their flu vaccination at the same time as their MMR.’

Across the south east 89.5 per cent of eligible five-year-olds had both jabs by 2020/21 - down from 91.1 per cent in 2016/17.

Initial symptoms of measles include a runny or blocked nose, sneezing, watery eyes, a high temperature and small grey spots in the mouth.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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