NHS: London Lags on Vaccination

London has fallen behind in coverage of many important vaccinations with some of the lowest uptakes in the country. The Royal College of Nursing has warned that the nationwide uptake of the meningitis vaccine by school leavers is worryingly low in the run up to Freshers Week.

The RCN said only a third of eligible teenagers were vaccinated with the Meningitis ACWY jab last year.

Meningitis

The Meningitis ACWY vaccination protects against four strains of meningococcal disease, meningitis and septicaemia – strains A, C, W and Y.

“Meningitis can be fatal and can leave those who survive with life-changing disabilities,” said Helen Donovan, public health lead at the RCN.

“Vaccination is quick, easy and free and offers protection against most strains of the disease but reaching young people is not easy. Many will have been away over the summer travelling or working before university. But the risk is real and getting vaccinated saves lives.”

School leavers in England are entitled to receive the Meningitis ACWY vaccine from Year 9 onwards. That group is particularly at risk when both studying and socialising with a large number of people, especially when moving into halls at university.

In recent years there has been a sharp increase in cases of the aggressive Meningitis W, with one in 10 cases proving fatal. From 2009 to 2016 the number of cases of that strain in the UK multiplied by almost 10 times.

Even before the RNC’s warning the disease was high on the news agenda following the tragic case of George Zographou from Bristol. The 18-year-old fell ill with meningitis at the Boardmasters music festival in Newquay and died shortly later.

The other important consideration for university freshers is the fact that meningitis’s key symptoms of fever, headache, drowsiness, aversion to light, sore throat and stiffness closely resemble hangover symptoms. Many young adults who contract the disease make the potentially dangerous mistake of assuming they simply have a hangover and waiting for it to fade away. Seeking treatment quickly is crucial to an effective recovery from meningitis.

Low Routine Vaccinations

A 2016 report by NHS Digital, the health service’s data branch, said that “national coverage figures reported for most routine childhood vaccinations at one and two years decreased slightly in 2015-16 for the third consecutive year.”

“There was some regional variation in coverage across the country with levels of immunisation for all routine childhood vaccinations as measured at one, two and five years highest in the North East. Coverage levels were lowest in London for all routine childhood vaccinations.”

In London the Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis, Polio and Haemophilus influenza type B vaccine – or the “5 in 1” Vaccine – had coverage of 90.6% in 2014-15 but fell to 89.2% last year.

MMR

The same trend shows in Measles, Mumps and Rubella vaccinations, with coverage the lowest in London at 87.3% of the eligible population at two years of age in 2014-15. That fell even further to 86.4% last year. The report by NHS Digital said “national coverage of Measles Mumps and Rubella (MMR) as measured at two years decreased slightly in 2015-16 for the second consecutive year, following a year on year increase since 2007-08.”

The only region to reach the World Health Organisation’s target of 95% was the North East.

Whether caused by anti-vaccination hipster parents or more rushed and hectic lifestyles, London’s failure to keep up with immunisation targets shows an appalling negligence that threatens the “herd immunity” that can reduce the spread of dangerous diseases overall. The vaccination jabs are free and the cost of not taking them can be catastrophic.

by Stewart Vickers

 

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