Why vaccination remains the best option to combat diseases

John Manyala from Mituri village, Uyoma, Siaya County, died recently after he was bitten by a rabid dog. Manyala died, because a local hospital, Madiany lacked anti-rabies vaccines.

In Imenti North, Meru County, Gloria Kawira is fighting for her life after she contracted pneumonia, because there is no proper, prompt and adequate treatment. All local health centres in the area lack basic vaccines against pneumococcal infections.

Another patient, Makau Kavalenge, from Ivuuni, Kitui County had to undergo amputation following a snake bite. The local dispensaries he was rushed to after the snake attack didn’t have anti-snake venom vaccines.

So, who really needs vaccination to develop immunity against communicable and infectious diseases? Since vaccines are meant for healthy people to protect against diseases, and everybody needs them.

However, there are people considered to be risk groups due to certain factors. They, include children below 12 years, the elderly persons, people with underlying medical conditions, such as diabetics, HIV/Aids patients, slum dwellers, prisoners, those staying in crowded places, such as schools, refugee camps and health care workers.

The elderly, children and those with underlying medical conditions have weak immune systems, healthcare workers handle patients with various infectious and communicable diseases, while slum dwellers live under poor hygienic conditions.

Prisoners and refugees live in crowded conditions, increasing their risk of being infected or spreading diseases, such as cholera, flu, pneumonia, typhoid and other communicable diseases.

To underscore the importance of immunisation, even diseases, which for a long time did not have vaccines, such as malaria, Covid-19, HIV/AIDS, dengue fever and even cancer now have vaccines that can control their spread and infections and above all, offer some hope.

Researchers, doctors and scientists have established that the world must pay practical attention and focus on vaccination to contain dangerous and killer diseases. It is interesting that the Government has not prioritised serious diseases, such as meningoccocal meningitis to be among diseases covered by national immunisation programme under Kenya Expanded Programme for Immunisation (KEPI).

It is a fact that many Kenyans are malnourished, because they lack proper balanced diets. Its result is the emergence of reduced immunity thus leading to vulnerability to infections and deaths.

“Unfortunately, despite advancements in medicines, morbidity and mortality rates are still high amongst many people,” says Dr Mohan Lumba an expert on vaccination and immunisation.

He adds;, “Death rates can be as high as two people for every 10 people infected by diseases, such as pneumonia or meningitis. This is 20 per cent death rate.”

Modern travelling between continents and countries means that through cross-regional spread, people living in one region where these diseases are not a problem could still acquire them. This means vaccination offers the best protection and is a ticket to good health given the abrupt onset and rapid progression of the diseases.

Prevention remains an ideal approach as only immunisation programmes for children and adults will manage the diseases. Data from World Health Organisation (WHO) shows that Global Alliance for Vaccination and Immunisation (GAVI) has brought immunisation rates to a record high, especially in poor countries, such as Kenya.

These immunisation programmes save the lives of 40 million people globally while lack of vaccination/immunisation results in deaths of about 7.8 million people globally every year. As strange and killer diseases ravage the world, immunisation remains the most ideal tool to combat the illnesses.

Heralded as a major medical success story in the digital or millennium era, it has prevented considerable morbidity and mortality associated with these diseases as there has been decreased by a remarkable percentage for the last 70 years. For this reason, WHO recommended that all countries should initiate this annual vaccination programme as a simple and cost effective means to improve health.

In Kenya, however, the full benefits of immunisation have not been realised. Typhoid awareness and prevention campaigns in some selected parts of the country did not yield much fruits as wrangles within the Ministry of Health led to the abandonment or withdrawal of the sponsorship by one of the multinational pharmaceutical companies.

The department  of vaccination and immunisation at the Ministry of Health under the Kenya Expanded Programme for Immunisation has tried to reach the required target by WHO of 80 per cent immunisation coverage, but it is always let down by the Government inability to provide enough vaccines.

“This shortage of vaccines to undertake childhood immunisation every year is our undoing, it is an issue the Government must seriously address,” says Professor Charles Chunge, a vaccine specialist and expert in travel diseases.

“More importantly, stakeholders in the health sector need to step up information centres on the importance of vaccination by giving accurate information and data or statistics,” says Professor Chunge.

Medical experts in Kenya are now advising the Government to start immunisation of young adults and the elderly persons as is the practice in the developed world, especially in the US. “When it comes to infections, everybody is at risk, since diseases know no boundaries,” observed the doctors at a medical summit in Nairobi.

Dr Mwangi, says in Europe,  Asia and the US authorities have recommended mandatory  vaccinations of senior citizens meaning people aged 65 years and above are vaccinated against certain viral and bacterial diseases, such as influenza, TB and pneumonia. “As one grows old their immune system becomes weak thus rendering them vulnerable,” notes Dr Aluoch.