Immunisation Horizon Scanning Volume 6 Issue 10

Measles: A tale of birth cohorts and herd immunity

Source: Practice Nursing, 2014, 25 (12,) pp 611–614

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Date of publication: December 2014

Publication Type: Journal Article

In a nutshell: Sarah Lang reviews the effect of measles infection and the impact of measles vaccination since its introduction in the UK in 1988. She discusses the implications for practice nurses and requirements for practice.

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Promoting vaccination

Source: Practice Nursing, 2015, 26 (1), pp 5–5

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Date of publication: January 2015

Publication Type: Editorial

In a nutshell: The recent publication of the MBRRACE-UK report 2009–2012 (Knight et al, 2014) into maternal deaths in the UK and Ireland has provided a reminder of the importance of the influenza vaccination programme for pregnant women. Although the maternal mortality rate has declined overall, it was found that 29 women died of influenza during pregnancy or up to 6 weeks after giving birth. Worryingly, 62% of these deaths occurred after the vaccine became universally available in pregnancy—suggesting that they could have been prevented if the vaccine had been given.

Length of publication: 1 page editorial

Vaccination uptake in pregnant women

Source: Practice Nursing, 2015, 26 (2), pp 84–87

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Date of publication: January 2015

Publication Type: Journal Article

In a nutshell: Vaccination in pregnancy is safe and effective, but the rate of uptake is much lower than recommended. Helen Sisson encourages health professionals to continue vaccinating with confidence.

Length of publication: 4-page article

Next winter’s flu vaccine may not be effective, concedes researcher

Source: The Guardian

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Date of publication: February 2015

Publication Type: News

In a nutshell: Scientists cannot be sure that next year’s flu vaccine will protect people against the strains that will be circulating in the coming winter, because the decision as to which ones to include has to be made within the next few w

Public health officials knew months ago about UK flu vaccine mismatch

Source: The Guardian

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Date of publication: February 2015

Publication Type: News

In a nutshell: Public health officials have conceded that they have been aware for months that the current flu vaccine provides almost no protection against the main strain spreading around the UK.

Flu vaccine ‘barely effective’ against main viral strain

Source: BBC News

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Date of publication: February 2015

Publication Type: News

In a nutshell: This year’s seasonal flu vaccine is barely able to protect people from the main strain of flu being spread in the UK, health officials say.