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Fifty years of immunisation in A ustralia (1964–2014): The increasing opportunity to prevent diseases
Author(s) -
Royle Jenny,
Lambert Stephen B
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of paediatrics and child health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.631
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1440-1754
pISSN - 1034-4810
DOI - 10.1111/jpc.12796
Subject(s) - medicine , public health , attenuated vaccine , vaccine preventable diseases , vaccination , immunization , family medicine , public relations , environmental health , immunology , nursing , biochemistry , chemistry , antigen , virulence , political science , gene , measles
Medicine has seen dramatic changes in the last 50 years, and vaccinology is no different. A ustralia has made a significant contribution to world knowledge on vaccine‐preventable diseases. Certain deadly diseases have disappeared or become rare in A ustralia following successful introduction of vaccines. As diseases become rarer, public knowledge about the diseases and their serious consequences has decreased, and concerns about potential vaccine side effects have increased. To maintain confidence in immunisations, sharing of detailed information about the vaccines and the diseases we are trying to prevent is integral to the continued success of our public health programme. Modern quality immunisation programmes need to communicate complex information to immunisation providers and also to the general community. Improving immunisation coverage rates and eliminating the gap in coverage and timeliness between A boriginal and T orres S trait I slander peoples and non‐ I ndigenous people has become a high priority.