A former Oxford Brookes University student who contracted a meningococcaemia infection during his time at university is urging improved awareness of the condition.
Matt Woolford, 25, from Reading, was studying his first year when he received a positive diagnosis for meningococcal-meningitis and septicaemia in October 2019.
Following the meningitis outbreak in Kent, which resulted in two fatalities, 20 laboratory-confirmed cases have been recorded with a further nine notifications still being examined.
According to the UK Health Security Agency on Sunday March 22, this brings the overall total to 29 cases.
No additional cases have been confirmed since Sunday and there are no reported instances in Oxfordshire.
Mr Woolford stated that universities serving as environments where meningitis spreads is not a new concept.
He explained that if patterns emerge and specific groups can be identified as facing greater risk, more action should be taken.
He added that awareness remains insufficient and there appears to be a gap in the broader system requiring more initiative.
After his condition deteriorated over a seven-hour period, he called NHS 111 after experiencing vertigo that caused vomiting.
He attended the John Radcliffe Hospital where symptoms of nausea, dizziness and faintness persisted.
He described being prioritised for blood tests while continuing to vomit, becoming so unwell that he curled into a ball while numerous teams surrounded him inserting various tubes to administer antibiotics and other treatments. He recalled his rapid deterioration to the point where he believed he was going to die.
Mr Woolford, now employed as a software engineer, received a Meningitis Research Foundation information leaflet a fortnight after the incident.
He noted this was two weeks later than it should have been but acknowledged that receiving it eventually was better than not at all, adding that such guidance ought to have been accessible sooner so he knew how to respond.
The Meningococcal B vaccine has been provided through the NHS since 2015 as part of standard childhood immunisation programmes, though private vaccination can cost as much as £240.
Since the outbreak began, NHS Kent and Medway has administered 8,002 vaccines and distributed 12,157 antibiotic courses, though Mr Woolford maintains the vaccine should be offered to university students who face elevated risk.
He pointed out that attaching a high cost to such protection means certain individuals will find it harder to obtain, which he considers unacceptable.
He expressed his view that remaining unvaccinated while possessing proper knowledge can be life-preserving, yet meningitis spares no one and neither should society’s response.