World Immunisation Week 2022: Why Life-preserving Vaccines Still Remains A Global Ambition

The theme of World Immunisation Week 2022, Long Life for All – in pursuit of a long life well lived, provides a timely reminder that while delivering life-preserving vaccines against dangerous childhood diseases remains a global ambition, it has not yet been universally achieved, particularly for those caught up in conflict. 

If an armed conflict occurs within 10 km from where a child resides, the odds that a child receives any vaccination are 47.2% lower. Following the killing of eight polio workers in February 2022, for example, the national polio vaccination campaign was suspended altogether in two provinces of Afghanistan – one of the few countries where polio is still endemic despite global efforts to achieve eradication, as per news agency ANI report.

Rt. Hon. Helen Clark, PMNCH Board Chair and Former Prime Minister of New Zealand and Kersti Kaljulaid, UN Secretary General’s Global Advocate for Every Woman Every Child, Former President of Estonia, call for a multi-sectoral response to ensure continuity of services for women, children and adolescents in conflict and humanitarian settings. 

Additionally, they urge global leaders to commit to greater investment in safety and protection measures for health and aid workers who risk their own lives striving to provide services, support and care to vulnerable women, children and adolescents in the most challenging circumstances.

In periods of conflict and in challenging humanitarian settings, even the most basic health entitlements – from accessing safe midwifery services to routine childhood vaccinations – can be denied to vulnerable women, children and adolescents who need them.

“The safety of the healthcare and aid workers in conflict zones must be respected and protected in all circumstances as the violation of health care worker rights is both a health and humanitarian crisis. Unfortunately, the safety of healthcare workers in conflict zones is one of the most crucial humanitarian issues, but it’s being overlooked”, says Dr Naveen Thacker, President-Elect, International Paediatric Association.

Health and aid workers also risk their own security, and their lives, trying to maintain service coverage, care and support for vulnerable women, children and adolescents in conflict settings. They may become casualties of conflict, either as accidental victims of attacks or as deliberate targets of hostile forces. Violence against aid workers claimed 484 individual victims in 2020, 117 of whom died, making 2020 the worst year on record for the second year in succession.

“Attacks on health systems and personnel in conflict zones not only result in profound acute- and long-term effects to health systems but also put a strain on health care staff with many traumatized directly and vicariously. There is an urgent need to address this grave issue, as it is crucial to the achievement of both SDGs 3 and 16”, says Dr Jaideep Malhotra, International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics.

(With inputs from agencies)

The theme of World Immunisation Week 2022, Long Life for All – in pursuit of a long life well lived, provides a timely reminder that while delivering life-preserving vaccines against dangerous childhood diseases remains a global ambition, it has not yet been universally achieved, particularly for those caught up in conflict. 

If an armed conflict occurs within 10 km from where a child resides, the odds that a child receives any vaccination are 47.2% lower. Following the killing of eight polio workers in February 2022, for example, the national polio vaccination campaign was suspended altogether in two provinces of Afghanistan – one of the few countries where polio is still endemic despite global efforts to achieve eradication, as per news agency ANI report.

Rt. Hon. Helen Clark, PMNCH Board Chair and Former Prime Minister of New Zealand and Kersti Kaljulaid, UN Secretary General’s Global Advocate for Every Woman Every Child, Former President of Estonia, call for a multi-sectoral response to ensure continuity of services for women, children and adolescents in conflict and humanitarian settings. 

Additionally, they urge global leaders to commit to greater investment in safety and protection measures for health and aid workers who risk their own lives striving to provide services, support and care to vulnerable women, children and adolescents in the most challenging circumstances.

In periods of conflict and in challenging humanitarian settings, even the most basic health entitlements – from accessing safe midwifery services to routine childhood vaccinations – can be denied to vulnerable women, children and adolescents who need them.

“The safety of the healthcare and aid workers in conflict zones must be respected and protected in all circumstances as the violation of health care worker rights is both a health and humanitarian crisis. Unfortunately, the safety of healthcare workers in conflict zones is one of the most crucial humanitarian issues, but it’s being overlooked”, says Dr Naveen Thacker, President-Elect, International Paediatric Association.

Health and aid workers also risk their own security, and their lives, trying to maintain service coverage, care and support for vulnerable women, children and adolescents in conflict settings. They may become casualties of conflict, either as accidental victims of attacks or as deliberate targets of hostile forces. Violence against aid workers claimed 484 individual victims in 2020, 117 of whom died, making 2020 the worst year on record for the second year in succession.

“Attacks on health systems and personnel in conflict zones not only result in profound acute- and long-term effects to health systems but also put a strain on health care staff with many traumatized directly and vicariously. There is an urgent need to address this grave issue, as it is crucial to the achievement of both SDGs 3 and 16”, says Dr Jaideep Malhotra, International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics.

(With inputs from agencies)