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Long Life, Well Lived: World Immunisation Week

By Nishkak +2 more

World Immunization Week is celebrated in the last week of April and is a good opportunity for us to remember the importance of vaccination and the role it has played in revolutionising healthcare and saving countless lives.


What is immunisation?

Immunisation is the process by which a person becomes protected against a disease through vaccination. Vaccination is the act of introducing a vaccine into the body to produce immunity.

The process of vaccination helps protect us from dangerous diseases by increasing our body’s immunity – or resistance – to that disease. It does so by introducing inactivated/ weakened or dead pathogens (germs) or a protein from the pathogen that causes a particular disease.  In this way, the body’s immune system learns to create specific antibodies (specialised proteins that identify and neutralise foreign objects such as bacteria or viruses) that will counteract the germs that cause that disease. So if germs of that particular disease enter the body again, it can recreate the antibodies needed to counter the disease and fight off the infection more efficiently.  

Diseases that are being successfully fought using vaccines include smallpox, polio, influenza, measles, hepatitis A & B and rubella (German measles). As a result, infant mortality rates have significantly reduced in the decades since the initial introduction of vaccines and fewer children are now affected by these deadly diseases. 

The National Immunisation Schedule (NIS)

Under India’s Universal Immunisation Programme, certain vaccines are recommended at different ages and stages of life. This information is summarised in the National Immunisation Schedule shown below.  

For children, from birth to around the ages of 10-16, vaccinations commonly provided protection against the diseases mentioned in the table below.

VaccinationDisease Protected Against  
BCGTuberculosis
OPV & IPVPolio
Pentavalent vaccineDiphtheriaPertussisTetanusHepatitis B Haemophilus Influenzae Type B infection
Rotavirus vaccineViral gastroenteritis
MR vaccineMeasles & Rubella (German measles)
TT vaccineTetanus
JE vaccineJapanese Encephalitis

Pregnant women are given tetanus vaccines at various stages of pregnancy to protect against neonatal tetanus. Other vaccines commonly given to adults include vaccines for hepatitis, cervical cancer, typhoid, rabies, flu, and now COVID-19. 

The COVID Vaccines

As COVID-19 began to show signs of turning into a global pandemic, there was a race to develop a safe and sustainable vaccine against the illness. Prepared using existing methods of creating vaccinations, all approved versions of the COVID-19 have played a significant role in not only reducing the severity of COVID-19 infections but also the total number of hospitalisations and fatalities. 

It is important to get vaccinated when it’s your turn. Take booster shots at appropriate times as directed by the government.

What you can do?

When combined with precautions against diseases, vaccinations are an incredibly effective healthcare strategy that has improved life expectancies across the globe. Here’s your chance to celebrate World Immunisation Week by checking whether you and your children are up to date with your vaccinations, and getting any shots that have been forgotten done at the earliest.

Disclaimer: The information included on this site is for educational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for medical treatment by a healthcare professional. Because of unique individual needs, the reader should consult their physician to determine the appropriateness of the information for the reader’s situation.

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