Rainger said public health was working as quickly as possible to check records and would be in touch with students and staff who were not immune to ask them to remain in quarantine and get advice and support.
“The quarantine period for non-immune close contacts starts on Thursday [May 4] and they are required to stay away from others in case they are developing measles for a further seven days,” he said. “In the meantime, we ask that staff and students who don’t have two MMR vaccinations to stay home and not go to work, or social or sports events, or have visitors.”
People are considered immune if they have evidence of two Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR) doses after 12 months of age, have had measles or were born before 1969.
Auckland Regional Public Health Service instructed the school to close under the Health Act.
A teachers’ only day was scheduled for today but parents have been informed of the additional school closure.
Rainger said the student had not been overseas recently so public health was working to identify the source of the infection given the disease has been eliminated in New Zealand and cases in New Zealand only occur when someone has caught the disease overseas.
“Measles is a highly infectious illness and can make people very unwell. It spreads very easily amongst people who have not had measles before, or who have not been immunised,” he said. “We will continue to see measles cases coming into Aotearoa New Zealand, given high rates of infection in other pockets of the world.”
Albany Senior High School board of trustees chairman Philip Voss said it was a concern for the school.
“It’s been a disrupted year with all sorts of other factors going on in schools too in terms of PPTA strike action and all sorts of other things too.
“Our thoughts are always, first and foremost, with our young folk and their learning.
“I guess at the moment it’s about them being safe and healthy and, in the same way we have done for all the Covid things over the last few years, that’s at the forefront of our thinking.”
Children are vaccinated at 12 and 15 months old as part of the routine childhood immunisation schedule.
Rainger said many people under the age of 30 missed out on their measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccination as a child.
“If you’re in this age group and you’ve not had the vaccine, or you’re not sure, go and get it. It will protect you and those you love against serious illness and you won’t need to stay at home in quarantine if you are exposed to measles.”
Previously this year, measles cases were identified on a flight from Jakarta to Sydney then on to New Zealand on February 14 and 15, according to the Ministry of Health.
The ministry also warned of a number of possible exposure events in Auckland, Tauranga and the Waikato between February 6 and 9.
Health professionals have already raised concerns this year about the country’s low immunisation rate.
The Ministry of Health reported immunisation coverage for New Zealand children at 18 months of age, by which time children should have had both MMR vaccinations, was 67.6 per cent for the three-month period ending December 31, 2022. By 2 years old, 82.4 per cent of children had received their immunisations.
