I grew up in a country where healthcare was not given as much priority as there is the developed countries with excellent facilities to incorporate the importance of well being and preventative measures. There was uncertainty about the sickness of kids and most of the time we did not understand the intensity of a child/parent being sick. There was a lot of closeness between people living in a community and people shared personal objects freely,
I was always eager to understand how and why members of my neighborhood got sick and how the chain continued from one child being sick to a whole community of kids who played together, being extremely sick. It was a common theme that everyone in one household got sick at the same time and recovered at the same time. Unknown to us, was the fact that there was a viral/bacterial infection that spread to make people extremely unwell. It made me wonder that maybe we can find the cause of all these illnesses and stop this from happening even before it started.
There have been many campaigns and goals set up by the WHO and the UNICEF to help spread awareness amongst people about diseases and the advantages of preventative measures. A lot of these campaigns stem off from the fact that vaccinations are vital for all, especially closely knit communities. Herd immunity is one of the greatest things that we have received by vaccinating individuals, second only to complete eradication of certain virus that caused smallpox. Awareness is the first step that is required for the poor, the uneducated and for people who simply do not understand the mechanisms and science behind viral infections. There are millions of people around the world, especially in developing countries who do not have access to the internet to research about vaccinations; more than that, some people can not even read about these topics and that’s where we need to make a difference.
The reason why awareness is sometimes very difficult to spread is because people in rural areas of certain countries, such as Pakistan and Nigeria, are completely oblivious of to the fact that vaccinations are preventative and not a cure. Some people from these countries also argue their religious and spiritual beliefs and indoctrinate their communities about the dangers and fatalities caused by vaccinations. These are poverty ridden places that are extremely lacking in resources to understand basic scientific principles. Recently, there have been initiatives, such as the Millennium Development Goals that helped instill a hope worldwide to feature the basic healthcare system. This involved eradication of hunger, empowerment of women and a new goal to eradicate malaria and HIV/ AIDS.
Child mortality is a common theme in developing countries especially one inflicted with malaria. About 35% of people who lose their life because of malaria are children. There were countless measures that have tried and failed at stopping malaria and it is an extremely heartbreaking situation to witness and hear about. Recently, rates of malaria have come down drastically due to awareness of the common population in African countries and by the innovation of safety nets and medications/ screenings in the earliest stages of the transmission of the malarial parasite. According to UNICEF, rates of malaria have fallen by over 60% due to preventative methods and saved countless lives. Even if there isn’t a clear cut cure to diseases such as malaria and polio, just acting on prevention is enough to reduce mortality rates.
By starting some of the global health goals and initiatives, there is sense of community in developing countries and more often that not, people come together for one purpose to better their life quality. It is much more important to bring the help and equipment to those who are in need and use any kind of media that can help them better understand why vaccinations and preventions do not just help them, but everyone around them are safeguarded by their choices. We understand that communicable diseases and infections such as measles and tuberculosis are supposed to remain confined but there are millions of people who do not realize the seriousness of this situation until and unless they are exposed to the truth by means of compassion and conveying of the message.
In summary ,making my home in the United States and having a constant exposure to preventative healthcare because of my Biology/ Pharmaceutical expertise has blessed me and my family to understand things we never realized before. It is much more important for us to first know the basics of preventions and vaccinations so we can communicate these messages to people who are in dire need of help, who live in countries that are struck with deadly illnesses and face life threatening situations in their everyday routine. Just observing serious viruses, such as ebola in the recent past should be an eye opener that hidden viruses are waiting to be exposed and pass on from one person to another, one continent to the another and can strike anyone at any time. With the advent of vaccinations and the discoveries of brilliant scientists around the world, we can take it one step at a time and play our role, in any way to convey the importance of prevention and immunization to the countries where it needed the most.
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