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Samoan family tells of lucky escape as child hospitalised with measles

December 7, 2019

There have now been 65 deaths from measles in the Pacific nation.

One family has felt first hand the effect of the measles outbreak in Samoa after their children were infected with the disease.

Living in the hills outside of Apia, the family's story is one of the positive ones to come out of the deadly epidemic which has claimed the lives of so many babies and children in Samoa.

The spots are just beginning to fade, but for 26-year-old Lafoia Tulaga's one-year-old daughter the disease became so severe she was taken to hospital.

"The doctor said she had measles and would have to stay in hospital," Ms Tulaga told 1 NEWS Pacific correspondent Barbara Dreaver.

"I heard news of babies dying and I was scared, but we trusted in God," she said.

Seeing improvement in her condition she was shortly released from hospital.

"We give thanks to God as it's him who has given strength back to my [child]."

Ms Tulaga is pregnant with her third child and told Ms Dreaver she had tried to get her two other children vaccinated but they had both been sick at the time and couldn't have the immunisation.

With the family not able to afford transport, volunteers like those in the immunisation teams coming door-to-door yesterday was a relief.

Due to have her baby this month, Ms Tulaga says she isn't concerned about her or her baby's health despite looking after her child with measles.

"I'm strong and I give it up to God," she said.

Other children in the community have also been infected with measles with a number of them still in hospital.

Two of Ms Tulaga's neighbours' children were rushed to hospital when medical teams in the area found them both suffering with measles.

Samoa's Ministry of Health says nearly 4,500 cases of measles have been reported since the outbreak began. The current death toll is 65, of those, the majority is under four-years-old.

The Samoan government says nearly 33,000 people were vaccinated in a campaign to immunise as many individuals as possible to stop the growing health crisis.

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