NATIONAL IMMUNISATION AWARENESS MONTH Aug 1st to 31

National Immunisation Awareness Month is an annual observance held in August to highlight the importance of vaccination for all age groups.

Vaccines are responsible for the control of many infectious diseases that were once common. Vaccines have reduced and, in some cases, eliminated many diseases that once routinely killed or harmed tens of thousands of infants, children and adults. Not only vaccines prevent infectious diseases but also from several cancers.

The viruses and bacteria that cause vaccine-preventable diseases and death still exist and can infect people who are not protected by vaccines. Vaccine-preventable diseases have a costly impact, resulting in doctors' visits, hospitalizations and premature deaths says "Dr.P.V.Raghavaiah,Consultant Pediatrician, KIMS Saveera, Anantapur

But despite all the evidence of safety and effectiveness of currently recommended vaccines, vaccine hesitancy has become a global problem. WHO has listed vaccine hesitancy as one of the top 10 threats to global health. Before a vaccine is licensed and recommended for use, it goes through a complex process to ensure it is both safe and effective, through preclinical laboratory work to three phase clinical trial in humans which almost takes a decade to get licence.

Vaccines have become victims of their own success, with many parents no longer fearing the diseases vaccines were designed to prevent. Unfortunately, misinformation about vaccine safety is widely promulgated, largely through the internet and social media. Refusing vaccination not only puts their own children at risk, but also affects others in the community. Preventing exposure to a vaccine-preventable pathogen (germ) through high vaccination rates helps cut off person-to-person transmission.

So it’s our duty as a citizen to get routine vaccination and encourage our near and dear once to do the same, to see a better future.