School issues health advisory despite ministry’s denial
Despite a letter from the principal of a St. Catherine-based primary school alerting parents that there is a measles outbreak and children from other institutions in the parish turning up at different medical facilities with fever and rashes, the Ministry of Health and Wellness (MOHW) has maintained that Jamaica’s measles-free status is intact.
According to a letter on the Eltham Park Primary School letterhead, above the signature of the school’s principal, Keisha Dennisur-Dennis, the school was alerted by the MOHW that there has been an outbreak of measles. The letter was dated May 19 and requested that parents either take or send in their child’s health passport so that the public health nurses can examine if they have been adequately immunised.
“Please note, if they are not fully immunised, their health status will be updated by receiving their measles’ shot,” the school wrote, along with the request that parents complete a consent form if they grant their permission for the child to receive the shots.
The MOHW issued an advisory on March 7 stating that Jamaica has had no local spread of measles since 1991, with the last imported case of measles reported in 2011.
“While there are currently no local or imported cases of measles in the country, Jamaica maintains a robust surveillance system for fever and rash, and all cases are reported within 24 hours, while suspected measles cases are reported immediately,” said the ministry.
There have been several cases of children turning up at health facilities in St. Catherine with fever, rashes, and other symptoms of measles. It is not known to what extent the cases are being reported for further investigation. In cases where they are reported to the health department, the doctors are oftentimes not notified of the outcomes of the investigation, as the parents would be the persons contacted by the ministry for follow-up.
Measles is a highly contagious disease that causes a high fever, rash, cough, and red eyes. It can lead to life-threatening complications, like brain inflammation and pneumonia. Health officials in the parish continue to maintain that there have been no cases of measles, as there has been no such announcement from the MOHW.
Even so, parents are puzzled about the mysterious illness that is afflicting their children. Those who have visited health facilities have been told it is allergies, ptomaine poisoning, or chicken pox and have been prescribed medications to deal with the rash and reduce the fever. Medical officials insist that it is not measles, as some of these children have been fully vaccinated.
“Measles is a highly contagious illness caused by a virus that replicates in the nose and throat of an infected child or adult. To stop the disease from spreading, if there is an outbreak, 95% of children in Jamaica need to be fully vaccinated with the two doses – MMR1 at 12 months and MMR2 at 18 months. Jamaica’s vaccination coverage for MMR has been relatively high over the years, with preliminary figures for 2024 at 94% for MMR1 and at 93% for MMR2. The target of at least 95% has not been met. The ministry reminds all parents/guardians to ensure their children’s/wards’ MMR vaccination status is up to date for their age to ensure the best protection against measles,” the Ministry of Health said in its advisory.
Each child is required to do a medical prior to admission each school year, which requires doctors to check their vaccination status.