Mass vaccination

Measles Measles is a viral infection known for its highly contagious properties. Infection with measles is transmitted through the respiratory tract and can manifest as fevers, the "three C's of measles": cough, coryza (runny nose), conjunctivitis(red/watery eyes), and a maculopapular rash. Management of measles, not prevention of measles, can be accomplished with vitamin A supplementation. In the centuries after, as explorers traveled from their borders and encountered new populations, these previously unexposed groups were acutely effected by measles. In 1971, the Measles vaccine began to be produced as a combined vaccine with two other newly developed vaccines: mumps and rubella (MMR Vaccine). A key cause of this challenge was a research article written in 1998 in "The Lancet" claimed to show a link between autism and the MMR vaccine. "The Lancet" retraced the paper in 2010 for incorrect data resulting from the study and for unethical treatment of the children in the study. Due to the high infectivity rate of measles, the vaccination level to reach 'herd immunity' is 95%. Because smallpox vaccination requires a live virus, it originally required a sample to be transferred from person-to-person or animal-to-person directly. This method involved the use of glycerol as a preservative and was significant for storage and transportation. This was particularly a problem in developing countries. In the years following the initiation of this plan, the WHO saw an increase in qualified volunteers, contributions from countries and participation in their campaign. It would not be until May 8, 1980, during the World Health Assembly that smallpox was announced as officially eradicated. Criticism of mass vaccination Vaccination policies were not met without resistance, as countries that had mandatory vaccination policies saw a rise in antivaccination movements. Only 1% of polio cases actually result in paralysis. This effort was titled the Global Polio Eradication Initiative and has seen wild success with a decrease in 99% of cases worldwide by 2018. When the global campaign began in 1988, there were over 125 polio-endemic countries compared to only 20 by the year 2000. In South America, transmission rates severely declined in the mid-1980s following the invention and widespread use of the OPV. The March of Dimes funded a large portion of the polio research all throughout the epidemic and eventually resulted in the development of the vaccine by Jonas Salk. This act embodied three of the most important pillars of a behavioral change campaign: social influence, social norms and examples. Elvis Presley used his social influence to normalize getting the polio vaccine, which increased vaccination rates among American youth to over 80% in just under 6 months. As of 2021, only wild polio virus type 1(WPV1) affects the world and are localized in Afghanistan and Pakistan. While both the live and inactivated polio vaccines were wildly successful in saving the world from the historic endemic, there still are drawbacks with each of the vaccines. New York City had created two major mass immunization programs, the first was the smallpox immunization program initiated in 1947 and the second was the swine flu influenza program in 1976. There are important lessons to be learned from the recent 'Swine Flu' pandemic. Improving techniques are necessary in trying to decrease the spread of infection-both in the community and within our hospitals would mean improving infection control and hygiene, and the use of masks, alcohol hand rubs and so on. A worldwide study was conducted which comprehensively analyzed adamantanes resistance in H1N1 influenza viruses from 1918 to 2019 and showed 77.32% H1N1 influenza variants demonstrating resistance to adamantanes. This study emphasizes the importance of global surveillance, especially in many third-world countries, as well as the evolution of drug-resistant H1N1 influenza variants in an effort to prevent another pandemic. ==Contemporary usage==

COVID-19 The introduction of multiple COVID-19 vaccines throughout the pandemic such as Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson and Johnson, and the newly approved Novavax vaccine have helped allow large amounts of the population to get vaccinated. When COVID-19 was identified in December 2019 there were no vaccines readily available to vaccinate mass populations. The type of vaccines that are available are messenger RNA, vector, and protein subunit. Messenger RNA vaccines work by giving cells specific instructions to make the S protein found on the surface of the COVID-19 virus. When vaccinating large populations an action plan must be created to organize which groups will receive the vaccination first.|360x360px As well as mass vaccination centers being established at many locations, such as stadiums led to many people getting vaccinated. In the United States, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell offered the league's 30 stadiums as mass vaccination sites. As of April 2021, NFL stadiums have administered more than 2 million doses. By December 2021, more than 100,000 people had received vaccinations at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Pharmacist have also played an important role in getting mass populations vaccinated since they are a skilled and trained workforce able to help increase vaccination rates. Many people can turn to drug or convenience stores to get vaccinated since it can be a quick and easy place to access. Without the involvement of pharmacies mass vaccination would be difficult to achieve. Pharmacy technicians can support pharmacist which will allow more vaccination services to be accommodated efficiently and safety. They are also advocates for getting vaccinated since they are educators and vaccine administrators. Countries such as the United States, Canada, and Australia were able to receive many vaccines early on due to them being wealthier countries. They were able to receive many doses enough to vaccinate their own countries but this left other lower-income countries with limited supply of the vaccines. With some countries receiving more vaccines than others this leads to inequitable distribution and can increase the risk of new outbreaks. Without proper global vaccine distribution it will make it more difficult to end the pandemic and allow for mass vaccination as a global effort. Amid the new strains of the coronavirus such as the omicron variant, scientist and healthcare officials have raised concern about reduced effectiveness of available vaccines. In response to a concern about vaccines having reduced effectiveness countries have encouraged booster shots for most of their population. The World Health Organization would like to prioritize unvaccinated people over booster doses so more of the population will have received their initial dose. == References ==