Thousands of South West students get free NHS MenB jab
Thousands of students in the South West of England are receiving free MenB vaccinations as part of a new NHS initiative. The campaign follows warnings from health agencies about the heightened risk of meningococcal disease for first-year university students.
Why it matters
Proactive vaccination programs are essential for preventing outbreaks of severe infectious diseases in high-density student populations.
Share Save Add as preferred on Google Fiona Lamdin , West of England home and social affairs correspondent and Sarah Jones , Gloucestershire A former student has described the agony of meningitis B as freshers across the south-west of England are being urged to get vaccinated.
When Tiff O'Connor, from South Gloucestershire, contracted meningitis in her first year of university eight years ago, doctors said the fact she had been vaccinated bought her crucial time.
So far, nearly 6,500 doses of the MenB vaccine have been given to young people across Somerset, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Bristol as part of a "one-off" NHS vaccination programme launched this summer.
Matthew Dominey, from NHS England South West, said: "MenB can be life-threatening, so it is vital that those eligible take up the offer of getting vaccinated."
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