National immunisation programme ‘saving lives’

The Department of Health has announced the continued success of the national immunisation programme.

It notes that there have been no recorded deaths in under-19s from meningitis in the last year, while over 3,000 cases of death or serious illness have been prevented.

Previously, Meningococcal C/meningitis has killed up to 78 people every year while leaving survivors with brain damage, amputations and other serious complications.

A recent government survey found that 73 per cent of parents now feel the MMR vaccine is safe, up from 63 per cent in 2003.

Furthermore, 74 per cent of people aged 65 and over received a flu vaccine in 2006/07, with no delays in supply reported.

Dawn Primarolo, public health minister, said: “This report underlines the need for vaccination and proves that our programme is helping to halt diseases in their tracks.

“It is proof that the UK has one of the most successful immunisation programmes in the world, thanks to the hard work of NHS staff.”

She added that the immunisation of children remains a cornerstone of public health protection in the UK and parents can be confident that routine jabs are the best method of protecting their children.

In February 2008, the Department of Health announced the results of an independent virus study which found no evidence of a link between the MMR vaccine and autism.