Child Development and Public Health

Public Health Measure - Immunizations

What has the “greatest impact on human mortality reduction and population growth (compared) to any other health intervention besides clean water” according to J.P. Baker (2000)? The answer is…..Immunizations (as cited in Berger 2009).

Signficance of Topic 

I chose immunization as my public health measure of choice because of how critical it is for all children.  Access and cost are two factors that could mean life or death for a child anywhere in the world.  Access and cost are addressed in the Affordable Care Act of 2010 which requires that health care plans cover preventive services recommended by doctors and experts at no cost to the patient.  This includes immunizations recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, including routine immunizations for children (http://www.healthcare.gov/law/about/provisions/services/background.html).  I feel strongly that high co-pay payments or deductibles should not stand in the way of a life-saving vaccine for a child.     

Immunizations in Cuba

Cuba has had a National Immunization Program since 1962.  This program has contributed to the eradication of nine infectious diseases (polio, whooping cough, neonatal tetanus, measles, mumps meningioencephalitis, malaria, rubella, diphtheria,  and congenital rubella syndrome .  Almost all children are the beneficiaries of a free immunization program that protects them against 13 preventable diseases. 

I would like to emphasize two goals of Cuba’s immunization program:  1) vaccinate all children and 2) at no cost (Reed, G., Galindo, MS., Galindo, MA, 2007).  These two goals align with World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.  In fact, WHO Vaccine-Preventable Diseases Monitoring System, 2006 Global Summary reports that 94 – 99% of Cuban children under 16 years old have been vaccinated (as cited in Reed, G., Galindo, MS., Galindo, MA., 200).  (Percent varies within this range depending on the specific vaccine.)  Cuba’s immunization program is a model program, which proves preventive care at no cost is possible when you make it a national priority, and its saves lives.

Impact on My Future Work

When I transition into the early childhood or education field, I realize that requiring immunization records and/or educating parents on where they can go to vaccinate their children at no cost is a simple act that can actually make the difference between life and death. 

Reference:

Berger, K. S. (2009). Introduction, The developing person through childhood (5th ed.). (p. 209). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.

Tinder, P. (2011, March). Cuba set to vaccinate 500,000 children against polio.   vaccinenewsdaily.com.  Retrieved from  http://vaccinenewsdaily.com/news/235862-cuba-set-to-vaccinate-500000-children-against-polio

Reed, G., Galindo, MS., Galindo, MA. (Fall, 2007) Cuba’s National Immunization Program. MEDICC Review.  9(1),   p 5 – 7. Retrieved from http://mediccreview.medicc.org/articles/mr_56.pdf

Childbirth - My Life Compared to Haiti

What I remember most about the birth of my sons was they were both a bundle of joy, but they also had me in 22 hours of labor for each!  Whew!  It may have been shorter if I had not had an epidural.   I also remember the scary responsibility of bringing a precious gift from God home to care for.  After EDUC 6101 Week 1 reading, I think about the advantages I had during pregnancy.  I had affordable prenatal care, access to nutritious food, transportation to the hospital, no known exposure to teratogens, and a supportive husband.  I chose these examples because they are in stark contrast to most women in the world.  My advantages had a significant impact on the early childhood for my boys, because different circumstances may have set them up for birth complications or developmental abnormalities.  From what I can tell, they are normal teenagers now.  (This is an older picture of when they were much younger.)

In Haiti, more women die before and after childbirth compared to anywhere else in the Western Hemisphere.  High poverty and a non-existent healthcare system is a deadly combination for many women and their babies.  It is common for women to have their babies on a hospital floor, if they arrive at the hospital at all, and many of these women bleed to death due to inadequate staffing and training.  What is the impact of these conditions on child development?  Haiti has one of the highest under-5 mortality rates across the Americas (Chatterjee, 2008).  I, on the other hand, had everything I needed for a safe birthing experience and developmentally healthy children.   This comparison makes it very clear that many children begin life in a hole, due to no fault of their own, making it harder to have a healthy childhood. The “pull yourself up by your boot-straps” adage does not work when you have no boot-straps or boots.

Reference:

Chatterjee, P. (2008). Haiti’s Forgotten Emergency.  The Lancet, 372(9639), 615 – 618. Retrieved from  http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(08)61259-3/fulltext