By stewartb

The absence of news coverage of measles from a Scotland perspective in the relevant section of the BBC News website is worthy of note. After all, BBC Scotland supposedly provides a public service and arguably, issues of public health relevant to children merit greater attention. BBC Scotland COULD communicate the significance of Scotland’s relatively high rate of MMR vaccine take-up and provide evidence – for context and perspective – which would encourage even higher levels.

It’s not as if BBC Scotland has always been ‘disinterested’! From its News website dated 25 June 2019 we find this headline: ‘MMR vaccination rates in slight fall among children in Scotland’.

Notwithstanding the factual nature of the headline with its negative framing, when one reads on we discover the big reveal what prompted BBC Scotland to publish an article on THAT occasion:

‘The number of children in Scotland receiving the MMR vaccine by five years of age has fallen slightly but remains “very high”, official NHS figures show. By the end of March, THE THREE-MONTH FIGURE WAS 96.6% – DOWN FROM 97%.’ (my emphasis)

And: ‘Uptake rates of one dose of MMR by the age of five have remained above the government’s 95% target since 2009.’

Note that last line.

In the Herald today we find this headline: ‘Measles, MMR, vaccine hesitancy: How at risk is Scotland?’ written by Helen McArdle. I am no longer willing to pay to read this newspaper which once was my daily news source of choice so I can’t comment on the full content of the piece. But online I was able to read the following photo caption:

‘The West Midlands region of England is in the grip of its worst measles outbreak since the 1990s, while uptake of the MMR vaccine in Scotland is at it lowest level SINCE RECORDS BEGAN in 2014.’

But, but ….. the BBC is telling me of ‘records’ that go back to at least 2009! And what about the time series data on MMR vaccine uptake for the all parts of the UK going back to 2009-10 that are published by NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) here?

Click ‘country coverage’ at 

https://app.powerbi.com/view?r=eyJrIjoiZTI3NWZhNzItMTIyZS00OWM2LTg0MzMtOGY5YTJjMGY0MjI1IiwidCI6IjUwZjYwNzFmLWJiZmUtNDAxYS04ODAzLTY3Mzc0OGU2MjllMiIsImMiOjh9

Surely the Herald would not cherry pick dates? And I wonder if the Herald reports this from the same UKHSA source? Based on the data for 2022-23:

– MMR1 take-up at 24 months: Scotland = 93.4%; England = 89.3%

– MMR 1 at 5 years: Scotland = 95.2%; England = 92.5%

– MMR 1 & 2 at 5 years : Scotland = 90.2%; England = 84.5%

I also wonder if – for further insights into ‘the risk’ to Scotland’s children – the Herald shared this information which been reported in the health section of the BBC News website today: ‘Get measles vaccine to avoid rapid spread, says UK health boss’

The BBC reports: ‘In some areas of London, like Hackney, nearly half of children have not been fully vaccinated against it.’

And: ‘NHS figures show uptake of both MMR doses by the age of five was considered very low in some areas in 2022-23:
74% in London
83.7% in West Midlands
85.1% in the North West

‘WHO recommends two-dose vaccination coverage of at least 95% of the population because measles is highly infectious and spreads easily. But in cities like Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham and Nottingham only 75% of five-year-olds are in that position.’

So take-up in Scotland is very much higher but there is no room for complacency and yes, still room for improvement here too!

Crucially, there are clear signs that public health authorities in Scotland have been alert and active on this emerging risk for some time. A formal, lengthy circular was sent to health professionals in Scotland from the Chief Medical Officer, Chief Nursing Officer and Chief Pharmaceutical Officer on 16 August 2023

‘AVERTING THE RESURGENCE OF MEASLES IN SCOTLAND 2023: This letter is to bring to your attention a range of actions being implemented to avert the resurgence of measles in Scotland. You are asked to note and implement the actions set out below where applicable to you and your teams.’