SWPH offers early measles vaccines in the wake of more than 100 cases in the region

Measles, mumps and rubella vaccines are seen in a cooler at the Rockland County Health Department in Pomona, N.Y., Wednesday, March 27, 2019. (Seth Wenig/The Associated Press)

More than 100 cases have been reported to Southwestern Public Health since October 2024, prompting the health unit to offer the protection of an earlier dose of the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine for infants aged six to eleven months.

The routine vaccine is typically administered at one year of age.

“A single dose of measles vaccine offers 85 to 95% protection against the illness for infants. With the outbreak we are experiencing, this clinic offers local parents an option to protect their child quickly,” said Jaime Fletcher, Manager of Vaccine Preventable Diseases for Southwestern Public Health.

The clinic will be available throughout march at the health unit’s site in St. Thomas (1230 Talbot Street). Appointments are required - you can make one online.

Two doses of the vaccine will still be required as part of Ontario’s routine immunization schedule - with the second dose administered at four years old.

“During an outbreak, this earlier dose is strongly advised to help protect infants as they are generally the most impacted by measles complications, such as lung and brain infections, hospitalizations, and death,” said Fletcher.

The appointments are only available to infants in the determined age range, who are residents of Oxford County, Elgin County, and the City of St. Thomas.