Immunization - the Right of Every Child - Essay Example

Describing Polio's helplessness, another polio sufferer writes, “I found it very frustrating to have an active mind in a permanently disabled body” (Gillan 1). Many individuals suffer from completely preventable diseases that could have been avoided if they were vaccinated in childhood. The very fact that a disease as preventable as polio was allowed to ruin so many lives makes it unbearable. Despite the awareness of immunizations and vaccinations, the multi-million dollar investments made by governments on vaccinations, the free camps and vaccination drives organized every day, there are many who fail to get their children immunized or are too scared to do so.

Thesis
Failure to get children immunized puts them at risk of innumerable life-threatening or permanently disabling diseases that would otherwise have been completely preventable. It is argued here that children should get immunized and that the recommended dosage of vaccinations is the right of every child, as much as his right to live.
Background

The World Health Organization (WHO) has a Millennium Development Goal 4 for reducing child (under five years of age) mortality by up to two-thirds by the year 2015 (“10 facts on immunization” who. int). According to reports millions of children die every year from diseases that could have been prevented through immunization. Vaccination is also a key strategy for the prevention of the emergence of pandemic infections. The WHO reports that vaccination results in the prevention of about 2-3 million deaths all over the world each year (“10 facts on immunization” who. int). Deaths in all age groups from pertussis, diphtheria, tetanus, measles and polio have been prevented through vaccination, which is “one of the most successful and cost-effective public health interventions” (“10 facts on immunization” who.int).

However, many individuals fail to get their children immunized, resulting in morbidity or death. For instance, as the WHO reports, more than 1 million infants and children die each year from rotavirus diarrhea and pneumococcal disease due to lack of immunization. As a parent of two healthy, vaccinated children, I believe it is essential to communicate the importance of immunization to all individuals so they do not leave their children to chance only out of fear of the side effects or the perceived uselessness of vaccinations. Discussed here are pieces of evidence that strongly suggest the benefits of vaccinations, the number of lives they have saved and the reductions they have caused in the overall disease burden of the world. Read More