THE immunisation debate rages on as doctors brace for a measles outbreak after the third confirmed case in Toowoomba in six weeks.
Toowoomba Christian College has sent non-vaccinated students home for 18 days - the incubation period of the virus - after a child from the school was diagnosed with measles this week.
A number of parents from the Highfields school have visited GP Connections chairman Dr Roland Owen with children suffering rashes and other symptoms of the illness.
No more have yet been diagnosed, but Dr Owen warned an outbreak could be on the cards.
"We had a couple of worried parents in the practice (yesterday) but there were no more cases of measles," he said.
"The message I'd like to get out is that if you catch measles, you won't get sick the next day.
"It usually takes about 10 to 18 days for symptoms to show so you have to remain ever-vigilant."
Toowoomba mum Rachel Bennett made sure all three of her children were up-to-date on vaccinations, including nine-month-old daughter Satiah.
She was a strong supporter of the pro-immunisation movement but respected a parent's right to choose.
"It's never nice to see your child in pain, but it only lasts a few seconds after the needle and then it's over," she said.
"I belong to a mother's group and all of our kids there are immunised.
"At the same time, I think it's important to be compassionate for people who have had complications and to respect other people's opinions."
Dr Owen supported Toowoomba Christian College's decision to remove unvaccinated students from classes until the threat of infection had passed.
"It's a good idea because there are still a small number of (immunised) children who don't have full immunity and it puts them at risk," he said.
"We've had a whooping cough outbreak in the last few years and now we're seeing measles.
"When there is a drop in immunity rates, diseases start to come back - we've seen that with the return of polio (in the Middle East and Africa).
"It might seem like the bogey man but if you drop your guard it will come back."
Not all Toowoomba parents support vaccination, opting rather to pursue homeopathic remedies which have been largely written off by the medical community.
"Just take your child inside and give then vitamin C, cover up the windows to prevent light coming in," one mother suggested on The Chronicle's Facebook page.
Measles can cause pneumonia, inflammation of the brain and middle ear infections.
Deaths mainly occur in children under the age of five and people with a chronic illness.
Symptoms include fever, general discomfort, runny nose, dry cough, sore and red eyes, red and bluish spots inside the mouth and a red and blotchy skin rash that first appears on the face and the hairline and then spreads over the body.
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