A deadlier and more transmissible variant has taken root, but now we have the tools to stop it if we want.
#WorldImmunitationWeek2021
There were so many jokes and memes about the dreadful year 2020 and how no astrologer predicted it!!! Everyone can’t wait for 2020 to be history and with it all the shake ups it brought. It’s almost a prayerful belief that with the turn of a calendar year, will come a new beginning. After all, its popularly said, “new year, new beginnings!”, but like a cruel joke at the tail end of 2020, we are suddenly introduced to the idea of a 'mutant strain' of Corona Virus.
Like many people, the last few months have been a whirlwind of anxiety, uncertainty, and complex emotions for me. The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored existing health disparities and inequities, highlighting the need for public health interventions more than ever.
Theories of herd immunity abounded, but all that is known as a fact is that our immunity is key to fighting it off. Moral of the story for all of us is that we can't stop the rain from falling, but what we can control is our reaction to it. This holds good not just for the virus, but our personal lives as well.
The pandemic is not a hurricane or a wildfire. It is not comparable to Pearl Harbor or 9/11. Such disasters are confined in time and space. The SARS-CoV-2 virus will linger through the year and across the world. “Everyone wants to know when this will end,” said Devi Sridhar, a public-health expert at the University of Edinburgh. “That's not the right question. The right question is: How do we continue?”
For over 200 years, vaccines have protected us against diseases that threaten lives and prohibit our development. With their help, we can progress without the burden of diseases like smallpox and polio, which cost humanity hundreds of millions of lives. Whilst vaccines aren't a silver bullet, they will help us progress on a path to a world where we can be together again.
Using the theme 'Vaccines bring us closer', World Immunization Week 2021 will urge greater engagement around immunization globally to promote the importance of vaccination in bringing people together, and improving the health and wellbeing of everyone, everywhere throughout life.
Like many people, the last few months have been a whirlwind of anxiety, uncertainty, and complex emotions for me. The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored existing health disparities and inequities, highlighting the need for public health interventions more than ever.
Theories of herd immunity abounded, but all that is known as a fact is that our immunity is key to fighting it off. Moral of the story for all of us is that we can't stop the rain from falling, but what we can control is our reaction to it. This holds good not just for the virus, but our personal lives as well.
As part of the 2021 campaign, WHO, partners and individuals around the world will unite to:
