The recent rise in measles cases in the UK, Europe and elsewhere in the world, cannot have gone unnoticed by anyone, especially by healthcare professionals.This paper looks at the rise in cases in the UK, Europe and elsewhere in the world, discusses possible reasons for the increase and latterly the role that general practice nurses (GPNs) play in ensuring that their patients, themselves and their colleagues are fully protected from this unpleasant disease, which can lead to serious complications, and even death.The nature of infectious diseases and outbreaks are such that the epidemiological reports are constantly updated, published erratically and often data differs between reports (due to reporting delays or erroneous case reporting). Consequently, this paper relies heavily on online reports of outbreaks and cases.
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