GREAT BAY, Sint Maarten (DCOMM) – The 23rd Annual Vaccination Week in the Americas (VWA) 2025 and the 14th World Immunization Week (WIW) took place from April 26 to 3 May, throughout the Americas to prevent childhood diseases under the umbrella of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).
The theme for the vaccine-preventable disease campaign was, “Your decision makes a difference. Immunization for all.”
The Collective Prevention Services (CPS), a department of the Ministry of Public Health, Social Development and Labor, Section Youth Health Care Baby Wellness Clinic, stood in solidarity with the VWA campaign, and is encouraging persons to check their vaccination records to ensure that they and their children’s vaccination records are up to date. CPS in the next few weeks will be inviting students with their parents to double check their child’s vaccination coverage.
This year, the VWA campaign was aligned with the Disease Elimination Initiative, which aims to accelerate the elimination of more than 30 communicable diseases and related conditions, of which 11 are vaccine-preventable diseases.
At PAHO, they aim to end more than 30 communicable diseases and related conditions by 2030. The Elimination Initiative is an innovative policy that promotes an integrated, sustainable approach to accelerate progress towards elimination of diseases in the Region of the Americas.
PAHOs commitment to the Elimination Initiative is to improve the quality of life for people and communities. This requires everybody to think and act differently, creating synergies and transformative strategies. Take action to end the suffering and harm caused by communicable diseases, ensuring that health thrives and the community flourishes.
PAHO says the timing is critical. Over the past decades, the Americas have achieved remarkable milestones in disease elimination such as when smallpox was eradicated in 1980, followed by the elimination of polio. Rubella, congenital rubella syndrome, and neonatal tetanus were also wiped out.
By 2024, several countries had become malaria-free, and mother-to-child transmission of HIV had been halted. However, challenges persist.
The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted health interventions and set back progress. Now, we must seize this moment to accelerate disease elimination and build on our successes, PAHO pointed out.
The campaign focus is on the protection provided by vaccines as a crucial part of ensuring an active life.
It is very important for every child to get vaccinated against childhood diseases which decreases the risk of illness, disability and death from vaccine-preventable diseases including cervical cancer, diphtheria, hepatitis B, measles, mumps, pertussis (whooping cough), pneumonia, polio, rotavirus, diarrhea, rubella, and tetanus.
The vaccine that prevents the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) protect girls ages nine to 14 and offers them lifelong protection against cervical cancer, one of the main causes of death among women.
It is imperative to effectively implement and maintain routine children’s vaccination coverage as the lack of such can leave the children susceptible to diseases such as polio, tetanus, measles, and diphtheria, according to PAHO, especially children who have compromised immunity.
Vaccines remain the best option of protection in eliminating childhood diseases. Therefore, it is important to make sure your vaccine records are up to date, and your records safely secured like you do with your passport or other identity documents.
