Harrogate meningitis survivor's plea to students to get jabbed
School leavers are being urged to make sure they're up-to-date with their vaccinations before leaving for university
A man from Harrogate is joining a national charity's warning urging school leavers to make sure they're up-to-date with their vaccinations before leaving for university.
Research by Meningitis Now shows up to a quarter of 15 to 24 year olds carry the bacteria that can cause the fatal disease compared to ten percent in the general population.
A campaign has been launched to encourage teenagers to get themselves protected against the bacterial infection, which can result in the loss of limbs, hearing damage and death.
Public Health England are also urging teens to check their vaccination status with their GP, especially those heading to university or college in the Autumn.
Nick Gilbert from Harrogate had meningitis three years ago - and suffered for months afterwards - but he hadn't really known much about the condition previously.
In 2018, Nick felt under the weather, but assumed he didn’t have anything serious. After resting overnight, he went about his business the next day and even went on a date.
But just 24 hours after first feeling ill, Nick collapsed, vomiting in a busy central London street. His symptoms were mistakenly assumed to be drunkenness by the many people who saw him. Fortunately for Nick, a young woman passer-by helped him to hospital, where his meningitis was diagnosed. Nick went on to make a good recovery.
He said: "For the month or two afterwards going for a walk in the park would put me in bed for the next few days.
"The initial part of meningitis is very severe and can be very dangerous but the after affects can also be extremely debilitating.
"It's something I'd heard of but I didn't really know what it was. I only thought it affected young children and babies.
"When I spoke to friends they were shocked that I'd caught it. I think it's important to make people of that age aware that it can affect them and it is very serious."
The NHS encourage "Fresher" students going to university for the first time to make sure they've had the MenACWY vaccine to prevent meningitis and septicaemia, which can be deadly.
It's freely available to everyone under the age of 25. People can get the vaccination at a GP or at freshers' vaccination clinics organised by the universities.
The MenACWY vaccine is also routinely offered to teenagers in school Years 9 and 10.