The World Immunization Week, celebrated every year in the last week of April, aims to enhance using of vaccines to protect peoples of all ages against the infectious diseases.
Protection throughout life:
Immunization is widely recognized as one of the most successful and cost-effective health interventions. It prevents between 2-3 million deaths every year and now protects children not only against diseases, for which vaccines have been available for many years, such as diphtheria, tetanus, polio and measles, but also against diseases such as pneumonia and rotavirus diarrhea, two of the most notorious killers of children under 5. Now, adolescents and adults can be protected against life-threatening diseases like influenza, meningitis, and cancers (cervical and liver) thanks to the new and advanced vaccines.
However, 1 in 5 children still misses out immunization. In 2013, an estimated 21.8 million infants did not receive lifesaving vaccines, a matter caused by an inadequate supply of vaccines, the lack of access to health services, a shortage of accurate information about immunization and insufficient political and financial support.
The Global Vaccine Action Plan (GVAP) aims to achieve the followings:
- Strengthening routine immunization to achieve the targets of completely covering all vaccines.
- Accelerating the pace of controlling vaccine-preventable diseases with polio eradication as the first goal in this field.
- Developing new and improved vaccines.
- Motivating research and development initiatives for the next generation of vaccines and technologies.
Internationally approved date: April 24th-30th, 2015
Locally approved date: Rajab 5th-11th, 1436H
Topic of the World Immunization Week 2015:
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Theme of the World Immunization Week
- Children and their families.
- Workers in the health sector.
- Health associations and decision-makers.
- The public.
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