Immunization: A panic retreat

Sri Lanka has one of the best immunization programs. It is comparable to the best in developed countries. From its inception in 1886, when the smallpox vaccine was introduced to the country till 2009 when two incidents occurred it was a success story. That does not mean it was an easy task. Health personnel had to fight a long and arduous struggle to install confidence in the national immunization program battling superstition, myth and ignorance.

Sri Lanka’s track record on immunization was so good that the World Health Organisation selected Colombo as a centre for training those involved in national immunization programs in Asia, Africa and the Far East.

Today Sri Lanka provides vaccines for ten different types of diseases. They include among others Rubella vaccine, Triple vaccine against Diptheria, Whooping Cough and Tetanus, Oral Polio vaccine, HIB vaccine, Measles vaccine and BCG vaccine. Thousands of lives have been spared and many more thousands saved from life-long suffering due to the administration of vaccines.

Today Sri Lanka is free from smallpox, polio and is on the verge of eradicating or eliminating several other communicable diseases.

However, since the death of two school girls following the Rubella vaccination in the first and last quarters of 2009 public confidence in the immunization program has waned. This poses a grave threat to the health and well-being of the future generation, those that are being born now and afterwards.

Accidents do occur either due to human error or due to unforeseen or unavoidable circumstances. It is necessary not to panic when accidents do happen. What is required is a sober and scientific investigation into what happened and take precautionary measures to avoid a repetition of similar incidents.

The situation was made worse by politically biased media reports and comments of trade unions and politicians. On a knee jerk reaction some began to blame the vaccine calling it substandard. However, stringent tests at foreign laboratories have now proved that there was nothing wrong with the vaccines. Rubella vaccines that are imported to the country have the World Health Organisation certification. The Rubella vaccine has been in use in the country since 1996 and there has never been such a fatal incident before.

The committee of medical experts who investigated the incidents have concluded that the death was due to rare severe anaphylaxis. That is a severe allergic reaction. According to available data worldwide such incidents occur one in a million.

What is urgently needed is to assure the population that the vaccines are safe and it is the best and only way to prevent the occurrence of the diseases for which they are administered. There is no necessity to harbour an undue mistrust on the quality and capabilities of our health personnel from the medical experts to the rural family workers.

It is thanks to their efficient and caring service that Sri Lanka has been able to secure a foremost place in health indices, even bypassing developed countries.

The authorities, however, are responsible for the present distrust among the population due to several factors. One was the panic exhibited by them. Another was the attempt to blame trade unions for the uproar. The other was the dragging of investigations on the conduct of health personnel that administered the vaccine. The delay in taking disciplinary action for negligence on the part of the officer involved in the Matara incident was unpardonable. The authorities were also slow in debunking the myths and false perceptions on the immunization program.

What is necessary now is a vigorous awareness campaign among mothers and in society at large on the benefits of immunization and the harm that would befall the community if it is not reactivated with vigour. It is something that the present generation owes to the next.