Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
FAMILY DOCTORS ARE advising parents that young infants eligible for the MMR vaccine should receive an additional dose before travelling abroad as the contagious illness spikes across Europe.
The Irish College of GPs, the representative organisation in education and standards in general practice, has recommended that infants between six and 11 months should receive an addition MMR vaccine at least two weeks before travelling overseas.
A statement issued by the professional body this morning is reminding the public that measles “is a potentially serious and highly infectious disease and is preventable through vaccination”.
Dr Scott Walkin, the College’s Clinical Lead for Infection Control, has outlined that measles is spreading rapidly in Europe.
“Getting the MMR vaccine is the best way to prevent cases of measles. It is a highly contagious disease. It is easily passed from person to person, where large number of people congregate, including airports, buses, trains and ferries,” Dr Walkin said.
“People at greatest risk of becoming ill with measles include infants and people who are not fully vaccinated with the MMR vaccine,” he said.
“Young babies are at particular risk of complications. Overseas travel presents a high risk of developing measles for unvaccinated children. It can be a severe illness which requires hospitalisation in about one in five cases. Vaccination is safe, effective and it’s essential for community immunity.”
There have been at least 47 cases of measles confirmed in Ireland so far in 2024.
In Europe, the incidence of measles has skyrocketed over the last year.
56,634 measles cases and four deaths have been officially reported across 45 out of 53 countries in the World Health Organisation’s European Region during the first three months of 2024 alone.
In 2023, there were 61,070 cases and 13 deaths reported by 41 countries in the European region.
Nearly half of the reported cases in 2023 were in children under the age of five, which the WHO has said reflects “an accumulation of children who missed routine vaccinations against measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases during the Covid-19 pandemic, coupled with slow recovery in vaccination coverage in 2021 and 2022″.
A measles infection tends to start with cold-like symptoms that develop about 10 days after a person is infected, followed a few days later by a rash. Symptoms include:
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Average working week is 30 hours? Where can I find a job like that and survive? Working 4 days a week is a pipe dream. Companies are too greedy today and will always find some way to benefit themselves before employees
@Doni Kehoe: Nowhere does the author mention working 30 hour weeks in conjunction with survivability. And it is an average, which includes the college student working 16 hours at weekends, the semi-retired consultant working 5-10 hours per week on select jobs as well as the factory worker on 45 hours, the doctor on 55 hours and the office worker on 42 hours. Gone are the days of 80 hours down the coal mines.
Yeah let’s tell Leo that and see how far we get. The majority of the country works a 5 sometimes 6 day week and not by choice in some cases on 6. I’d be all for a 4 day week though. Think of all the retail staff who will be dragged in all over the holiday season by their scrooge management.
We already have people working 4 days a week in our place. It seems to be working out really great for them. They have more time to spend with their families on a Monday after they ring in sick!!! #Weekendbender #premierleaguesunday
@Philip: exactly the point of reduced working hours. More productivity and less waste when people are given flexibility and treated as people rather than objects of industry.
My trouble is that the only people I know who managed a four day week – undoubtedly a great way to go – did it by working flat out for those four days, and evenings, so were exhausted by day five.
Also to be considered is the necessity
for ” unions” with their totally outdated structures.
@Bill ORourke: if unions are outdated so are businesses. They’re an essential part of making capitalism work for the worker
Wait til the environment is totally banjoed and then we won’t have to work at all….coz we’ll be dead.
Have a nice day..
No work? Woohooooo…..bring it on :)
@Aunties:
It’s impossible to build a society like ours on a planet and not impact it negatively. Just enjoy it while you have it. You were always gonna die sometime anyway.
@Aunties: banjoed
@Nollaig Elliot: impossible with the likes of you. Sweet dreams
To implement a 30 hour week would need everyone to join a union and a nation wide strike.
@Sean Conway: let’s get on that so
I do three and still pack in five days worth. Efficiency.
@Earl of Daventry: For most bosses that means you have another 2 days of that efficiency you could be doing for them.
Stop firms making working at an office would be a good start. It’s iniquitous that in this day and age that a non-customer facing role should not be done from home, ESPECIALLY in IT!
My self and my husband work 5 full days + 2 hours on Sat and Sun.
Partly economic necessity and also because of scarcity of staff.
Fantastic article raising many points worth considering.
I do 5 days or 60 hours and then 2 days or 24 hours the next week. Changes from days to nights every 2 week cycle. Leaves you wrecked most of the time.
try 7 days a week. that’s my job. I’m not complaining about it except the pay isn’t good enough but I’d be happy with 5 if I could afford it. 4 children. preparing 2 for college. hi ho hi ho…..
You can be sure that there will be unscrupulous employers will want to ensure that they take 10 hours of pay away if a 30 hour week ever comes in
have your say