Misinformation warning as vaccine uptake drops

Yorkshire has recorded one of the sharpest drops in childhood vaccination rates in England, with uptake in Bradford among the worst nationally.

NHS data shows the proportion of two year olds in the region who have received their first dose of the MMR vaccine fell from 92.8% in 2018-19 to 90.1% in 2023-24.

Health authorities warn that coverage needs to reach 95% to prevent outbreaks of the viruses.

Andrew Taylor, interim director of public health at Bradford Council, said the authority was working hard to address the issue, adding that misinformation was partly to blame.

"We really do want to improve the rates of immunisation," he said.

"It is disappointing to see that we're lower in this latest period than we really wanted, because we're putting in a lot of work to encourage people."

He said there was a growing feeling of reticence around vaccinations, saying people were becoming "more hesitant than they used to" and criticised those in the public eye who cast doubt on vaccine safety.

"Any politician, as far as I'm concerned, who promotes ideas that vaccinations don't work is actually putting the public at risk and should think very carefully before they spread that [message]."

Mohammad Jawad said he "trusts the process" when it comes to immunisation

In Keighley, the Modality GP Partnership runs a series of outreach clinics to help drive up vaccination rates.

Muhammad Jawad, who brought his two-month-old son, Ruslan to a session at Airedale Shopping Centre said he "didn't have any hesitations or any concerns".

Urging other parents to get their children immunised he also warned against misinformation, with some people reaching their opinions based on "no evidence, no research, nothing, just random social media".

He said: "Everybody has their opinion, but people shouldn't discourage people not to have vaccinations.

"I trust the process. They have helped my baby from when he was in his mummy's tummy and this is for his betterment and our betterment."

Laura Pickles, who brought her four-month-old son Theodore to the clinic, said: "There's a lot of negativity out there that tries to sway you into thinking that it's bad and that you shouldn't vaccinate your child.

"But I think it is important really to get it done and keep them protected."

Laura Pickles believes pop up vaccine sessions are a good tool for encouraging awareness

According to NHS data, the Bradford district's overall vaccination rate dropped to 85.6% over the last five years, the biggest fall in Yorkshire and the Humber,

Leeds has also slipped to 87.3%, while, Barnsley (94.4%), Wakefield (93.5%) and Rotherham (93.3%) remain above 93%.

Dr Zoyah Hussain's work trying to boost child immunisation rates is credited with helping uptake go up from 40% in some areas to 90%

Dr Zoya Hussain, from the Modality group, has been leading on improving childhood immunisation uptake in parts of the district with historically lower uptakes and has won awards for her work.

She believes taking the vaccine to communities rather than vice-versa has been a key factor in a huge turnaround in Keighley and the surrounding areas.

"We've hit the highest [vaccination] rate in 20 years.

"We've gone from low 40s up to over 90 percent. So we're doing really well.

"We've really gone out into the community. And I think being able to talk to patients and parents and dispel hesitancies, and educate them with the appropriate information and evidence-based information about immunisation, has been the success."

Dr Jackie Craven said a drop off in vaccinations rates had an impact on NHS services

Other frontline clinicians warn the consequences of not dealing with the mountain of misinformation could have huge knock on effects for the NHS.

Dr Jackie Craven, vaccine lead for the Modality group, says: "Last year there was a reduction in the flu vaccination uptake and, as a result of that, GP consultations increased. As a result of that, hospital admissions increased, ICU admissions increased, and all deaths from the flu influenza virus also increased."

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) recently issued an urgent warning to families to catch up on routine child vaccinations, citing the recent increase in measles cases, with 674 confirmed cases since January, 37 of them in Yorkshire and the Humber.

It said regions with the lowest rates of vaccine uptake "are of particular concern".

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