Neotero Islam, Skye Stevens, Linnea Kogsta,

Maryann, King
Dr. Holland
Composition II
November 25, 2014

Immunizations in Children

The beginning of vaccinations isnt exactly as space age and glamorous as many would
like to believe, partly because it did not occur during the space age or even modern times. The
story begins in 1796 England with a country doctor named Edward Jenner; he performed the
worlds first vaccination. Taking pus from a cowpox lesion on a milkmaids hand, Jenner
inoculated an eight-year-old boy, James Phipps. (Stern,Markel 2005). Jenner waited six weeks
and continued his experiment with the boy. He variolated two sites on James arm with
smallpox. For those not aware, variolate was an ancient means of vaccination. The process
simple; lance an area of the skin and rub smallpox scabs in the newly created wound. James
Phipps remained unaffected by the smallpox virus. This discovery was revolutionary, and the
success led Jenner to publish at his own expense a volume that swiftly became a classic text in
the annals of medicine: Inquiry into the Causes and Effects of the Variolac Vaccine.
(Stern,Markel, 2005) This was the beginning stage that paved the way for the development of
modern vaccines. By 1800, 100,000 people had been vaccinated in Europe and vaccination had
begun in the United States, spearheaded by Harvard professor Benjamin Waterhouse and
President Thomas Jefferson. (Stern, Markel 2005).

Fast forward to the year 1885, 80 years had gone by, and Louis Pasteur created the
system and terminology of what we now know as a vaccine, suspension of live (usually
attenuated) or inactivated microorganisms or fractions thereof administered to induce immunity
and prevent infectious disease or its sequelae.(Stern,Markel 2005). Pasteur discovered that he
could inactivate a bacterium by exposure to adverse conditions, which allowed him to follow
with work on anthrax and rabies. By the nineteenth century the smallpox vaccination became
mandatory under state laws, which spearheaded the governments involvement in mandating
immunizations.
In the twentieth century, childrens immunizations were standardized. A complete
regimen was scheduled, some of the vaccines included: diphtheria, measles, mumps and
rubella. These standards were managed by the government ranging from local law to federal
rulings. By the late nineteenth century vaccine development started to have a
rationale. Eventually, being vaccinated was required by law for public school attendance.
By the mid twentieth century a methodological breakthrough occurred in accordance with
vaccine development known as the golden age, viruses were found to be grown in cell cultures
which allowed for more rapid and better vaccine development. Let us not forget the polio
vaccine of the 1950s or the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) of the 1960s which ultimately
eradicated the diseases and saved thousands of lives.
In addition, after the founding of the World Health Organization (WHO) and United
Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF), vaccine programs were globalized and targeted towards
children. In 1974, the WHO launched the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI), with
the goal of dramatically increasing vaccination rates among children in developing countries.
(Stern, Markel 2005). This was a great effort to obliterate several diseases across the globe.

The 1980s brought much to the table in the world of immunization/vaccination, genetic
engineering. Scientists were now able to develop vaccines with some genetic editing and were
able to manipulate the virus/bacteria as they wished. This essentially opened the door for
creation of more and better vaccinations. Point in case, the first vaccine to be developed through
genetic engineering was against Hepatitis B virus.
The twenty first century has seen great strides as well, with continuing development of
influenza vaccines, pneumococcal vaccines and HPV vaccines. Vaccines are now commonplace
in the medical setting. Before vaccines the United States the childhood mortality rate before
age five was 20 percent (Stern, Markel 2005). Access has become simplified by local health
departments providing safe, effective and affordable vaccinations to everyone. Diseases are
continuing to be contained and for that fact alone, we need to thank Edward Jenner and the
countless vaccine pioneers.

The containment of Diseases are not the only benefit to having vaccinations or
immunizations. There are many other advantages to having vaccinations in be given in the
school. I must begin my premise by stating why people have proven to have problems with
immunizations. One reason would be pricing, or inability to pay for the vaccinations
themselves. This reasons can range from having no insurance to flat out being broke. One could
even make the argument that this may be the main source for why people refuse to comply with
the idea of vaccinations. There have been many programs set up for people cannot afford the
vaccinations. Programs such as the Universal purchase are set up for those parents in need. This
is very important because I am of the belief that this may be one of the more overlooked reasons
for parents not wanting to concede to some vaccination laws. I feel this way, because no one
wants to be viewed in the court of public opinion as a parent that is incapable of providing the

proper health care for their child. That would mean that there is a possibility that when people
bring up the religious reasons for why they are against vaccinations, that they are using this as a
cover up for the real reason that they have an issue with this being mandatory. I must admit that
the United States government has done a really good job of covering their tracks in a lot of these
situations. That is why the Universal Purchase was put in place in the eastern region of the
United States. In so many words this program can be defined as a program that requires certain
states to purchase all required immunizations. Before I dwell on this for too long, I must also
mention the Affordable Care Act or the ACA. This is a similar program that stretched further
than the eastern region. Their main objective is to have the states pay for all required
vaccinations. They even raised the stakes by having the state pay for the Adults as well. I guess
the Government figures that money makes the world go around; and if they eliminate the
financial arguments, that they may be touching on over 60 percent of the people who oppose.
Another argument that people make is the religious argument. (e.g., Its against my
religion to put impurities or the unknown in my body) My main concern, being a Muslim used
to be what they put in the vaccinations. I was mainly referring to what I am against putting into
my body. I make this point because my diet is very important to my religion with me being a
vegetarian, and some of those immunizations may contain traces of some animal product, or
maybe an illegal drug. I am quite sure that the medical field is very aware of this, because in this
day in age doctors are required to ask about any allergies, and to provide information about any
medication that is administered. This is all good, but I put a lot of my personal issues with
vaccinations when I have spent time in countries that cant afford to give them out, and the sites
are very alarming when it comes to my health and future. It took time for me to realize and
study more to realize that my religious beliefs are not compromised when it comes to saving my

life. I was always taught that God (Allah) is most forgiving, especially when you are defending
your well being, or doing what is necessary to survive. I dont really know if the people making
the claims of religious reasons have even looked at the vaccination situation from this
perspective. I mean the perspective of God not punishing you for doing what you have to do. I
know I much rather live a life immune to diseases, and viruses that I dont know about, than to
sit in pain with some sick sense of personal morality. Yes: that means if I get shot in the in the
heart, and the only way to save my life is to inject me with the pork vaccination, Id be the first
Muslim to willingly intake pork in the modern day era (SMILE).
So how has vaccinations in helped the United States? One would be the prevention of the
spread of disease, and deadly viruses. They have also provided programs that can legislate
pricing for those families that are less fortunate. Religious beliefs are taken into consideration
with exemption laws that allow the parents to refuse for religious reasons. There are also
exemption laws in place for United States for children who cannot receive certain vaccinations
for health reasons. With all of this said I am of firm belief that the United States Government has
done a great of educating the public about the importance, and the overwhelming benefits to the
mandatory vaccinations given to children. They continue to emphasize their willingness to
reduce the threat of side effects, as well providing preliminary briefings prior to injection. I can
only speak for myself, while giving my honest opinion about my feelings on vaccinations in
children, when saying: I have been in the military for 16 years, and they have adopted a system
of making vaccinations mandatory. These vaccinations allow us to travel to any country in the
world and be prepared to return without any infectious disease. This has been set in place since
the beginning of the twentieth century, and has been very successful.