THE WORLD IMMUNIZATION WEEK HAS STARTED
Every year from April 24 to April 30, the World Immunization Week is held on the initiative of the World Health Organization. The theme of the World Immunization Week 2022 is “Long life for all”. Its purpose is to emphasize the importance of equal and broad access to vaccines that contribute to ensuring a long and healthy life for everyone. The World Immunization Week dates back to the creation of the expanded Immunization Program in 1974. The problems faced by the Program include: insufficient awareness of the public and Governments about the scale and severity of targeted diseases; ineffective Program management; inadequate equipment and skills for storing and handling vaccines; insufficient funds to monitor the impact of the Program, which is reflected in the level of immunization coverage and a decrease in the incidence of targeted diseases. At present within the framework of the World Immunization Week, events are being held that draw public attention to immunization as one of the main preventive measures to protect humanity from infectious diseases. The objectives of these events are aimed at increasing the rate of immunization of the population by organizing a vaccination campaign in epidemiologically disadvantaged and hard-to-reach regions around the world, organizing explanatory and educational work with the population. The modern National Calendar of preventive vaccinations includes vaccination against 14 infections, such as: viral hepatitis B, tuberculosis, diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, measles, rubella, mumps (mumps), polio, influenza, hemophilic infection, tick-borne encephalitis, tularemia.
In Russia, the list of infectious diseases, vaccinations against which are mandatory and free for all citizens, and the procedure for vaccination is defined by Federal Law No. 157-FZ of 17.09.98 “On immunoprophylaxis of infectious diseases”.
During the week of immunization, we remember that due to the mass vaccination of the population, the creation of the first smallpox vaccine and the development of the latest mRNA vaccines used to prevent severe cases of COVID-19, many epidemiological diseases that claimed thousands of human lives in the old days were eliminated on our planet.
GET VACCINATED IN TIME AND BE HEALTHY!
Department of Microbiology, Virology and Immunology of KSMU