August 5, 2014

National Immunization Awareness Month

Immunization protects all of us from serious diseases. Please join the Adair County Health Department in getting the word out about National Immunization Awareness Month!

  1. Many vaccine-preventable diseases are still common in the U.S.
  2. Those that are not common here are still found in other parts of the world, and can still be a threat.
  3. Most of the outbreaks reported in 2014 are direct results of an imported case spreading in an unvaccinated population. Unvaccinated travelers that are infected with measles abroad continue to bring the disease into the United States; and once they do, it quickly spreads when it reaches communities with groups of people who are unvaccinated. The recent measles outbreaks underscore the importance of vaccination for people of all ages.
  4. Some of these diseases are very contagious.
  5. Any of these diseases could be serious – even for healthy people.
  6. Certain people may be at higher risk for getting some diseases or having more serious illness if they were to get sick, like young children, older adults, and those with health conditions.

What should parents, consumers, and healthcare professionals do?

  1. Parents should ask their child’s healthcare professional about vaccines they need.
  2. Adults should talk with their healthcare professional about the vaccines that are recommended for them.
  3. Healthcare professionals should strongly recommend the vaccines their patients need when they need them.
  4. Clinicians are the most trusted source of vaccine information for parents and adult patients.
  5. A strong recommendation from a healthcare professional is a strong predictor of whether or not parents decide to vaccinate their child as well as whether or not adults decide to get vaccinated.

Vaccines are safe.

  1. All vaccines used in the U. S. require extensive safety testing before they are licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
  2. FDA and CDC work with healthcare professionals throughout the U.S. to monitor the safety of vaccines.
  3. Several systems are used to monitor the safety of vaccines after they are licensed and being used in the U.S.