~by Mary Weaver
I was never able to sit on my grandpa’s lap as Thaddus Voshel Dorris died at age 36 from tuberculosis. I had an Aunt Alpharetta who died of scarlet fever, and Uncle Raymond and Uncle Thaddeus died from diphtheria, ll three as infants or below the age of 4. Granted this was back in 1911-1918, but I share it as we think about the importance of vaccines in our current lives.
I have a good friend whose niece is expecting her first baby in April. The mom-to-be is very anxious that she will not be able to obtain the needed vaccines for her newborn.
Often when people think of “public health” they think of care for the indigent. As a former nurse involved in public health, I prefer to have it identified as the health of the public. One person receiving an immunization is good for that individual, but when we think about the entire population, disease prevention is best when we have herd immunity. Herd immunity comes through mass immunizations, or the disease invading all persons, and those who live have immunity.
Many of you know about the Iditarod, the March 1 dog sled race in Alaska, but you may not be aware of the public health significance of the race. The name Iditarod came from the native Inuit languages Ingalik and Holikachuk. The word means “distant” or “distant place.”
In January of 1925 the children and adults in the city of Nome AK, were dying of diphtheria. Every day more cases developed. The doctor in town thought the disease might wipe out the town of 1400. He initiated a quarantine, but knew the only way to stop the deaths from the respiratory disease was the vaccine.
Nome was locked by sea and air due to the subzero temperatures. The only way to save the town was to obtain the serum, but it was far away in Anchorage.
Territorial governor Scott Bone asked to have the serum transported by dog sled. He summoned the best dog sled mushers to run a relay. A train brought the serum to Nenana from Anchorage and on Jan. 27, Musher Wild Bill Shannon began the journey of transporting the serum of 674 miles. Traveling through the night, the relay ran at an average of 6 miles per hour. The previous time for the travel was about 10 days, but this relay was completed in five and a half days.
The serum arrived and was administered, and within three weeks the Nome town physician owas able to lift the quarantine.
Persons of my vintage remember when the polio vaccine was developed in the early 1950s. We lined up and took a little cube of sugar with a pink dot in the middle. My fourth grade teacher wept with tears of joy while the sugar cube was being administered to my classmates.
I am very alarmed with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. being appointed to lead the Department of Health and Human Services by President-elect Trump. If approved by the Senate, or even a recess appointment, RFK has publicly stated he is opposed to vaccines in general. To avoid being a gas light column, he has said he will not keep immunizations from people. Thank goodness.
RFK states vaccines result in bodily harm, as sadly, some children have a negative response to a vaccine. Those are extremely rare instances, especially when we think of the number of children who have not contracted diphtheria, scarlet fever, polio, measles etc.
I carry anxiety regarding the attitude being voiced by RFK when he claims he will discontinue the Centers for Disease Control(CDC), the Federal Drug Administration (FDA),and the National Institute of Health (NIH). These are where microbiologists and scientists research, develop, and test for immunizations and vaccines. When the next epidemic or pandemic arrives, the scientists and researchers will be gone.
For the immediate moment, elderly cohorts obtain your shingles, RSV, influenza and Covid shots. You farmers and gardeners, get your tetanus shot renewed. Moms and dads of children, please make certain your children’s immunizations are current.
With or without RFK, seeking immunizations always seems imperative for the health of the public, our relatives, neighbors, friends, and us as individuals.
Mary Weaver, a former public health nurse writes VIEW FROM MY WINDOW from her home near Rippey.
