An Auckland paramedic’s warning about measles has gone viral on Facebook after he posted a photo with a simple message: “Please vaccinate.”
After transporting another patient who has contracted measles to Middlemore Hospital in Auckland, Brendan Peat wrote: “Time for a plug as the outbreak slowly turns towards an epidemic”.
The post comes as the number of affected Aucklanders grows to 762 this year. This is certain to break 1000 within days at the current rates of transmission.
Measles, which is preventable through vaccination, can cause death or long-lasting health problems, though no Kiwis have died in the current outbreak – the worst since 1997.
“Please trust science, and vaccinate not only kids but adults too against such an easy preventable disease which is proven safe and effective,” Peat shared to his Facebook page.
Since uploaded one week ago, the post has garnered over four thousand reactions, and over four thousand shares.
Australian Premier of Victoria, Dan Andrews, has shared the photo to his own Facebook, adding, “It’s relevant over there. It’s relevant here. It’s relevant everywhere.
“This is exactly why we brought in No Jab, No Play laws, and why we’re making it mandatory for front-line health workers to be fully vaccinated.”
The No Jab, No Play laws were introduced by the the Labor Government in 2016 and requires all kids in Victoria to be vaccinated against deadly but preventable diseases. It further demands all parents show their Immunisation History Statements to their childcare provider twice a year.
Side note… John Oliver takes on the anti-vaccination movement. Post continues after video.
The Victorian Government reports vaccination rates in their state have increased significantly as a result of the strict regulation, surpassing their target of having 95 per cent of children under the age of five vaccinated.
Despite this, Australia is currently on track to see at least double the number of measles cases in 2019 compared with last year.
Young people under five years of age are contracting the disease in serious numbers in Auckland, and are also the age cohort at the greatest risk of long-lasting effects or death.
As the measles epidemic in Auckland continues, the area has been declared a no-go zone for travellers with babies as the New Zealand government attempts to contain the outbreak.
Schools in the hardest-hit regions have asked unvaccinated students not to attend, while school sporting activities are being reconsidered.
– With AAP.
Top Comments
Infant immunisation rates in Samoa dropped from 84% to 30% after a scare there when 2 babies died after receiving immunisation shots - turns out it wasn't the vaccine but another medicine that was incorrectly injected. Predictable result: this outbreak in NZ is probably the one that led to the outbreak in Samoa, where the death toll has reached 62, including 54 children aged 4 or younger. I wonder what the anti-vaccination lobby makes of this situation.
I am on the Disability Pension with mental illness. I don't know for certain if it has anything to do with the encephalitis I suffered as a complication of measles (I've had a number of diagnoses, pick one) or not but there's a pretty good circumstantial case IMO.