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National | Health

Measles epidemic: NZ to deploy more nurses, as Samoa plans mass vaccinations

Samoan health officials have announced a compulsory mass vaccination campaign to stem the country's measles epidemic.  This comes as the NZ government commits to upping the number of vaccination nurses it intends sending to support the Samoan efforts.

A state of emergency was declared in Samoa on Saturday, with 15 measles deaths and more than 700 cases now reported. This has seen all the country's schools closed, including the local university, exams postponed and public gatherings involving children banned.

In the latest efforts, the Samoan Ministry of Health says it is introducing a compulsory mass vaccination campaign, with special focus on high-risk groups in two of the country's most populated islands.

"The Ministry of Health has maximised its coordinated efforts to control the spread and adverse effects of the measles epidemic through a compulsory mass vaccination campaign prioritising certain vulnerable age groups in Upolu and Savaii," the ministry says.

The vulnerable groups being prioritised are children 6 months - 19 years and non-pregnant females 20 to 35 years.

NZ committed 12 vaccination nurses to Samoa last week, as well as vaccines and medical supplies, and has now markedly upped that support.

“New Zealand will deploy a further 18 vaccination nurses, bringing the total to 30 working in Samoa over the next four weeks, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters says.

“The medical assistance team will support Samoan health personnel, providing treatment and medical supplies in a district hospital on Upolu that is facing heavy demand due to the outbreak.”

Fiji's Ministry of Health and Medical Services today confirmed seven cases of measles, after experiencing an outbreak in the Serua-Namosi subdivision, specifically the Wailali Settlement in Wainadoi.

"The latest confirmed cases are a seven-month-old from Wainadoi, a three-month-old from Wainadoi, and a 19-year-old from Navunikabi in Namosi," the ministry says.

On Sunday evening, the ministry says it was notified of a suspected case of measles within the Tongan team that arrived to play in the Oceania Women’s Rugby Championship. This led to the Tongan team being placed under quarantine and their scheduled games being cancelled pending testing results.

The ministry says "because we have an effective immunisation programme, measles is rare in Fiji."