Preventing epidemics

Such is the state of public health in the country that entirely curable diseases like measles keep coming back and killing our children in numbers not seen in years. Another 22 cases of measles have been reported in Lahore and one child has been killed. This comes after 2012 was one of the worst years in terms of deaths caused by measles, with Sindh being the worst affected. The biggest problem was a shortage of vaccinations against measles, which is what likely led to nearly 100 deaths in the province in December 2012. We do not yet know if the cases in Punjab are linked to the lack of vaccinations in Sindh but that is the most likely explanation.

The reason mass vaccinations are so important is that even one weak link in the chain can bring everyone down. Diseases like polio and measles spread quickly and hence are vital public health issues. This is also why parents, religious figures and community figures do not have the right to deny their own children or followers vaccinations. This is not a purely personal matter; the refusal to get vaccinated has a ripple effect that will be felt throughout the country and indeed even across our borders. Just recently, it was believed that a strain of polio discovered in Egypt had actually originated from Pakistan. Polio was a disease we had all but eradicated; now, not only is it back with a vengeance here, we will likely bring it back to other countries that had eliminated the menace.



As bad as refusing vaccinations is, we end up compounding the problem by threatening and killing those who volunteer to administer the vaccinations. The killings of polio workers have had a chilling effect as such incidents prompt international organisations to suspend their work and simply pack their bags and leave. The return of polio and the increase in cases of measles may only be the beginning. As we become a nation which weaves conspiracy theories around basic medicine, other diseases long believed to be gone will likely return, too. And when that happens, we will truly be isolated from the world in a way that we can scarcely imagine. It is time we faced up to the reality that vaccinations are vital or the international community of nations will have nothing to do with us.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 25^th, 2013.