Health officials, schools bracing for surge in measles cases as new term begins

Health officials and schools in Auckland are bracing for the return of the school term, and the surge in measles cases it’s expected to bring.

They’re likening the virus to a heat-seeking missile, with the vulnerable being its target.

There are now about six confirmed new cases of measles in Auckland each day. Last month, it was about half that.

Auckland Regional Public Health Service clinical director Julia Peters told 1 NEWS a number of schools have already seen measles cases, and the number will only rise from Monday.

“Certainly, we had a very large outbreak in 2011 and it’s certainly at the moment seems to be on a steeper trajectory at this point in that outbreak than it was then,” she said.

The health service will be writing to schools and other education bases over the coming days, and sending a special information pack to help them cope.

“Obviously we’d like not to be in this position but given that we are, we feel that we need to take these actions,” she told 1 NEWS.

Laingholm Primary School principal Martyn Weatherill is among those preparing students to come back from holiday.

“Simply, we put 25 children who are perhaps hygienically not the best in a classroom and kids spread germs,” he said.

“The end of last term with just the flu we had 25 per cent of our children away for the last three weeks of term.”

Mr Weatherill said some parents have chosen to not vaccinate their children and the school has been making sure those parents understand what that could mean.

“If for argument’s sake an epidemic hit a school, the school would be closed… parents need to be aware that that’s a possibility,” he told 1NEWS.

Vaccination clinic aims to make a dent

A vaccination open clinic in West Auckland on Saturday was set up especially in response to the outbreak.

The Auckland region now has about six new cases confirmed a day when a month ago it was about half of that.

Michael Chai’s baby is too young to be immunised, so he and his partner were at the clinic being vaccinated themselves.

“The outbreak is the biggest news and also we’ve got the young one to protect,” he told 1 NEWS.

“She is our first one and we’re always worried about what’s going on,” he said.