Nova Scotians getting measles vaccines as cases rise elsewhere in Canada

First at Five looks at the symptoms of measles and how to protect yourself and your family from the contagious virus.

More than 1,000 Nova Scotians have recently rolled up their sleeves to protect themselves against measles.

“We’ve been so delighted by the uptake to our measles clinics. We’ve had a great response and hope to continue to have a great response, throughout April,” said Dr. Catherine Brown, Nova Scotia Health Central Zone Medical Officer of Health.

While there are currently no measles cases in Nova Scotia, other provinces are seeing growing numbers.

On Friday, Prince Edward Island health officials confirmed two cases of measles for the first time since 2013. Both individuals were not vaccinated and had recently travelled together to an area within Canada where there are outbreaks. The two have since recovered.

In Ontario, there have been more than 800 since the fall. Many of those cases are tied to a gathering in New Brunswick.

The New Brunswick outbreak was declared over in January.

“It’s one of those things that can spread pretty quickly and pretty easily through the air even before you know you have the virus, so that’s the key to measles and why it’s so infectious is that a small amount can stay in the air for a long time and sometimes you don’t even have symptoms,” said infectious disease specialist Dr. Lisa Barrett.

Measles symptoms can include:

• fever
• cough
• runny nose
• red, watery eyes
• small, white spots inside mouth and throat
• rash that looks like small red dots

Most people recover within two to three weeks, but there can be complications.

“The really important and potentially deadly ones include pneumonia, brain inflammation, long-term effects on your brain and how it functions,” said Barrett.

When it comes to who is eligible for a vaccine, Nova Scotia Health said infants between six and 11 months should only get one if they are travelling.

Children and youth should get two doses, typically when they are 12 and 18 months old.

It’s recommended adults born between 1970 and 1995 get an updated dose, as many only would have received one in childhood. Adults born in 1996 or later should only need a vaccine if they missed them during childhood.

Adults who are 55 or older are generally considered to be immune but should get one if they are travelling.

“The smallest babies in our communities are most at risk, and other people in our communities who also can’t receive the vaccine. This includes anyone who’s pregnant and anyone who’s immunocompromised,” said Brown.

If someone does not have a family doctor or isn’t able to make it to one of Nova Scotia Health’s mobile clinics, people are able to get the measles vaccine at pharmacies.

“Since the establishment of the community pharmacy primary care clinics, we have been able to provide more publicly funded vaccines than were previously available,” said pharmacist Pam Kennedy.

“There’s definitely been a lot of calls to our clinic inquiring about the vaccines. Primarily around those people that are travelling to areas where measles cases are on the rise.”

If someone is hesitant or doesn’t want to get vaccinated, Barrett said reach out to health-care providers with any concerns.

“Ask tons of questions and keep the conversation going because your risk and what you decide to do with vaccination can change over time as the situation changes, so make sure you keep having conversations,” said Barrett. “This is not a one and done, and there’s lots of providers out there who aren’t going to push vaccines on you but would love to answer questions.”

Those interested in getting vaccinated can visit Halifax West High School Saturday, April 12 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page