South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Deputy president David Mabuza, Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize visiting the Aspen Pharmacare sterile manufacturing facility.
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Vaccine manufacturing doesn’t come cheap. It depends heavily on support from developed countries. It also requires much more than relaxing intellectual property rights and a desire for vaccine equity.
A health worker administers an injection to a child below the age of one year during a routine immunisation at a health center in Kampala, Uganda.
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Ghana’s mid-year target of procuring and administering 17.6 million COVID-19 vaccine doses may be constrained by global supply, cold chain capacity, and vaccine hesitancy.
It’s no secret many kids (and adults) don’t like needles. But where needle phobia can be a barrier to vaccine acceptance, it’s important to set your children up not to fear injections. Here’s how.
Vaccine hesitancy is a growing public health problem.
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Vaccine hesitancy has resulted in multiple vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks. Research on vaccine hesitancy in South Africa is limited. But growing evidence suggests that it’s becoming a problem.
There’s no guarantee future COVID-19 vaccines will work in the elderly. So we can consider vaccinating the young first to protect them. Here’s what we need to work out first.
Whether a coronavirus vaccine involves a live virus or a carrier organism, it will probably require more than one injection. But that’s not a bad thing.
If your immunisation record is incomplete, you might repeat a vaccination unnecessarily, or miss out on government support, child care, or work. So it pays to check.
Children at window of a building in Hillbrow, Johannesburg. Children will be vulnerable if vaccinations are postponed.
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Coronavirus drug trials are underway – a virologist explains what the treatment options may be.
An elderly man at a social grant paypoint in South Africa after the COVID-19 lockdown. (Photo by MARCO LONGARI / AFP) ()
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South Africa must develop a comprehensive health and economic strategy if it is to stop the COVID-19 pandemic without causing long term socio-economic damage.
When you’re feeling sick, your immune system is fighting to get you well again.
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The white blood cells act as an army of fighting cells, protecting your body from bad cells known as germs. White blood cells can capture germs and even swallow them.
A health worker administers the Ebola vaccine.
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There are many reasons adults might not be up to date with the vaccinations they need. Catching up is easy enough, and vitally important in the fight against infectious diseases.
There are three types of flu vaccine available in Australia.
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You don’t have to be an expert to be an effective advocate for vaccination. Here are some tips if you find yourself talking to someone who isn’t convinced they should vaccinate their kids.
People may unknowingly bring measles back from other countries, including Europe.
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We’ve had the measles vaccine in Australia since 1968, but a two-dose program was only introduced in 1992. And if you haven’t had the second dose, you’re at risk of contracting measles.
Rubella has been eliminated in Australia, but it still exists in other countries.
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Thanks to successful vaccination programs, Australia has just been declared free of rubella. Continued vigilance is important to make sure it doesn’t come back.
Paediatrician at the Royal Childrens Hospital and Associate Professor and Clinician Scientist, University of Melbourne and MCRI, Murdoch Children's Research Institute
Paediatrician, National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance; Clinical Lecturer, Children's Hospital Westmead Clinical School, University of Sydney