What you need to know about Immunizations and Vaccines — BIMC Hospital Bali

What you need to know about Immunizations and Vaccines

Posted on : June 25, 2015

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Immunization is the process whereby a person is made immune or resistant to an infectious disease, typically by the administration of a vaccine. Vaccines stimulate the body’s own immune system to protect the person against subsequent infection or disease.

Immunization is a proven tool for controlling and eliminating life-threatening infectious diseases and is estimated to avert between 2 and 3 million deaths each year. It is one of the most cost-effective health investments, with proven strategies that make it accessible to even the most hard-to-reach and vulnerable populations.

It has clearly defined target groups; it can be delivered effectively through outreach activities; and vaccination does not require any major lifestyle change.

Both an immunization shot and vaccine shot work by using a small amount of a virus or bacteria that could be used with lab-produced protein that imitates the virus that effectively prevents infection by that same strain of virus or bacteria.

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If you have an immunization shot you will actually be given a form of the disease that your body can effectively beat with the marvel of your immune response, which produces antibodies that intensify your immunity.

At some point in time in your life if you were to become exposed to the same organism carrying a disease, your immune system would kick in to eliminate the infection.

BIMC can help you and your family prevent disease such illnesses through vaccinations and immunizations for children all in an effort to prevent disease — precisely what immunizations are meant for.

Over the years immunizations have quelled epidemics of once common infectious diseases such as measles, mumps, whooping cough and a host of others some almost eliminated completely like smallpox and polio.

For your kids, because proof of immunization is often a requirement before entering school or preschool, it’s necessary to keep your children current with the vaccine schedules always logged in a little booklet that needs to be kept and photocopied. If you do happen to miss a dose in the schedule come talk to us at BIMC for a catch up schedule.

Your family will always have a sense of security knowing your children will be protected from diseases that can lead to critical health issues. The recommended immunizations for kids up to six years old and that are available at BIMC:

  1. Diphteria-tetanus-pertusis (accellular) DTPa-containing vaccines and dTpa (adolescent/adult) vaccines
  2. Haemophilus influenza type B vaccine (Hib)
  3. Hepatitis A vaccine (HepA)
  4. Hepatitis B vaccine (HepB)
  5. Human Papilo Virus (HPV), recommended for adolescents aged 11-12 years old
  6. Influenza vaccine
  7. Measles-mumpsrubella vaccine (MMR)
  8. Meningcoccal C conjugate vaccine (MenCCV)
  9. Penumococcal vaccines (conjugate 7vPCV polysaccharide 23vPPV
  10. Rotavirus vaccine
  11. Polio vaccine
  12. Typhoid vaccine
  13. Rabies vaccine
  14. Varicella vaccine (VV)

BIMC recommends that you take immunization for your kids seriously as during the course of their young lives a serious health risk is likely to occur to children who are not vaccinated. Fortunately all is preventable in fact most diseases are at their lowest levels since the 70s.

Not all parents believe that their children require the range of vaccinations that are commonly recommended as some diseases are very rare but they are only rare due to vaccinations. In communities right here in Indonesia, which have reduced vaccinations with the thinking the disease is no longer a threat, an infectious disease can return to the population and astonishingly quick.

There has been rigorous debate amongst “thimerosal” the preserving agent in some vaccines. According to the Center of Disease Control (CDC), no harmful effects have been reported from the amount of thimerosal used in vaccines. (In July 1999, vaccine manufacturers agreed to lessen or eliminate altogether thimerosal in vaccines as an extra safety measure.)

Yet another misconcpetion with vaccines, in particular the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine is its relation to autism. It is important to note that MMR vaccines as well as chickenpox or inactivated polio vaccines have never contained thimerosal and the only commonality is that autism is found in kids who are vaccinated for MMR around the same age.

 Let’s Not Forget Adults!

Adult immunization is also important as in some cases the effects of the disease are more serious than for children. These days we are living longer and healthier through better exercise and nutrition although let’s remind ourselves of the importance of vaccinations and how they have played a role in our longevity.

Vaccines can protect adults from serious and deadly diseases and we forget that because we were vaccinated against diseases such as polio or measles as a kid we must be safe, right?

For adults up to 64 years of age such vaccinations as diphtheria, flu, shingles and tetanus are considered the most common. Others that need to be updated are chickenpox, HPV, measles, mumps and rubella. Vaccinations for high-risk adults, that is certain medical conditions or lifestyles may need additional vaccinations, may Include hepatitis A & B, meningitis and pneumococcal vaccine. Inquire with your BIMC doctor.

 

Note: BIMC advises for all individuals to be checked by a doctor before any vaccines are given to either a child or adult.

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