Persons reminded to get vaccinated before travelling to yellow fever-affected areas

PERSONS PLANNING to travel to Brazil or other areas affected by yellow fever are being reminded to get vaccinated. It is advised that the vaccine be administered at least ten days prior to travel. The yellow fever vaccination can be accessed at specific health facilities on various days.

Yellow fever vaccinations are administered at the Slipe Pen Road Comprehensive Health Centre in Kingston on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 8:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.; and the Montego Bay Type 5 Health Centre in St James every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. 2 p.m. The cost is $1,500 per vaccine.

Ahead of the Rio Olympics that started on Friday, the Ministry of Health offered free yellow fever vaccination to Jamaican athletes, their management team and their families who will be travelling to Brazil during this period as a precautionary measure.

Yellow fever, which is a class one notifiable disease, is an acute illness caused by the yellow fever virus, which is found in the tropics of South America and Africa. The virus is transmitted by the bite of infected mosquitoes such as the Aedes aegypti, the same vector that transmits the chikungunya, dengue and zika viruses.

Individuals who wish to obtain more information may call the Ministry of Health or the nearest health centre. Persons may also visit the website at moh.gov.jm and www.facebook.com/themohgovjm; https://twitter.com/themohgovjm; https://instagram.com/themohgovjm.