JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas –
With National Immunization Awareness Month beginning
Saturday, health care professionals at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph’s 359th
Medical Group plan to step up their education efforts.
An information table set up in the family health waiting
area throughout August will provide beneficiaries with pamphlets and other
literature that explain why regular immunizations are important and describe
the many benefits of vaccines, Capt. (Dr.) Adam Faizi, 359th MDG immunizations
director, said.
“The focus of National Immunization Awareness Month is to
educate families and make them aware of the importance, safety and efficacy of
immunizations in preventing the suffering and possible death associated with
vaccine-preventable illnesses,” he said
The monthlong observance is also an opportunity to emphasize
the importance of back-to-school shots for 4- to 6-year-olds and 11- to
12-year-olds and to encourage boys and girls 11 years old and up to be
vaccinated against the human papillomavirus, or HPV, Faizi said.
Although the month of August is a time to place added
emphasis on the importance of immunizations, the 359th MDG makes it a
year-round mission.
“We as providers make it our goal to answer questions about
immunizations and encourage families at every visit to stay caught up with
immunizations,” Faizi said.
Childhood vaccines are critical for a number of reasons, he
said.
“They prevent many common and less common diseases and,
therefore, their unwanted and sometimes devastating effects and outcomes,”
Faizi said. “They prevent suffering, illness and death associated with these
diseases.”
The diseases they prevent include pneumococcal pneumonia,
haemophilus influenza B, hepatitis A and B to polio, chicken pox, meningococcal
meningitis, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, measles, mumps, rubella and HPV.
Vaccines also have economic and societal benefits, Faizi
said.
“They prevent billions of dollars spent on the health care
of persons with vaccine-preventable illnesses as well as the days and hours
lost at work and school,” he said.
Children should be vaccinated according to the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention schedule, which can be found online or at any
Air Force pediatric clinic, Faizi said.
“Generally speaking, the vaccine ages are birth, 2 months, 4
months, 6 months, 12 months, 15-18 months, 4-6 years and 11-12 years,” he said.
In addition, yearly flu shots are recommended starting at
the age of 6 months.
Faizi also addressed safety concerns.
“As with any foreign substance, there is always a risk of
adverse events called side-effects as well as risks for allergic reactions,” he
said. “Fortunately, vaccines are thoroughly tested before being released to the
public and thoroughly studied once they’ve been released.”
Faizi said patients at JBSA-Randolph are screened at every
visit with their doctor for allergies to drugs and, before receiving a vaccine,
families fill out a screening questionnaire.
“There is no way to guarantee there won’t be a reaction to
vaccines,” he said. “Considering the number of doses given each day, each year
and each decade, the number of these reactions is extremely small compared to
the number that don’t have a reaction and the number of children’s lives saved
by these vaccines.”
The HPV vaccine is recommended because it prevents four
strains of the virus that can cause genital warts in boys and girls as well as
cancers of the cervix, genitals, anus and throat, Faizi said.
“HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection,” he
said. “Ninety percent of individuals will have been infected with a strain in
their lifetime and, fortunately, the majority of the strains are cleared by our
bodies.”
Faizi said Gardasil, the HPV vaccine used by the 359th MDG,
is the only vaccine available that is associated with cancer prevention.
According to the CDC,
adult vaccination rates are extremely low and most adults are not aware they
need vaccines, but ensuring that adults obtain the recommended vaccine is an
emphasis at the 359th MDG.
Faizi said the recommended vaccines for adults are the
meningitis booster at 16 years, the shingles vaccine at 60, the pneumococcal
pneumonia vaccine at 65 and a tetanus booster every 10 years.
The 359th MDG’s immunization clinic is open 7:30 a.m. to
4:15 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday.