From the World Health Organization (WHO):
The theme of World Immunization Week 2015 is “Close the Immunization Gap.” The gap between the 1 in 5 children who still do not receive basic life-saving vaccines, as well as to the gaps in progress towards the targets set by the Global Vaccine Action Plan (GVAP). The GVAP envisions a world where everyone lives life free from vaccine preventable diseases – whoever they are, wherever they live – by 2020.
Sometimes we take certain privileges and opportunities for granted. While we are lucky enough to enjoy a freedom of choice in America regarding our individual healthcare, we often forget that vaccines were developed to prevent deadly disease, with extra emphasis on the “deadly” portion. For example, it is a lot easier to discount the importance of vaccinating your children against Measles when you don’t see thousands of children in your region dying from the Measles every year. There is a reason countries that promote vaccination for their children have a lower risk of disease – they have been vaccinated!
The number of children that received the Measles vaccine before their first birthday increased from 73% to 84% between 2000 and 2013, which exponentially reduced the number of Measles-related deaths by 75% in the same time period. Basically, that means that for every one additional child that was vaccinated, five lives were saved. Vaccines help prevent communicable diseases, which means that an individual’s choice to not receive the vaccine not only puts themselves at risk, but that individual is also putting everyone around them at risk, as well. When one quick and easy task can help save your life and the lives of the people around you, it should be an easy decision to get vaccinated.
Help us support WHO’s World Immunization Week, a campaign that aims to raise awareness for the millions of children that desperately need vaccinations that could save their lives from cured and easily preventable diseases, but do not have access to the care they need because of their financial or social situation. During this week, WHO hopes to jump start progress towards their goal of having 100% of children able to access life-saving medicine by making sure everyone knows about the problem. So, you can now consider yourself aware and do something to help!
You can help the cause by sharing this post, or sharing any of the WHO marketing materials available here on your preferred social media platform. Here are some more facts about World Immunization Week, courtesy again of WHO:
Vaccination affects us all, and in World Immunization Week 2015, WHO is calling on everyone, from policy-makers and health professionals to community-based initiatives and the private sector, to raise awareness about the importance of immunization and mobilize their collective resources and creativity to close the immunization gap. By keeping deadly and mutilating communicable diseases in check, vaccines are — and will remain essential to maintaining and expanding health gains. Vaccines are an important tool in tackling future outbreaks and epidemics.
Key Facts
Immunization prevents illness, disability and death from vaccine-preventable diseases including cervical cancer, diphtheria, hepatitis B, measles, mumps, pertussis, pneumonia, polio, rotavirus diarrhoea, rubella and tetanus.
Global vaccination coverage is holding steady.
Immunization currently averts an estimated 2 to 3 million deaths every year.
But an estimated 21.8 million infants worldwide are still missing out on basic vaccines.
Make sure you are vaccinated! If you are a patient at our office, contact us to verify your vaccine status and make sure you are covered!