Madagascar Measles Outbreak: Vaccination Programs and Strategies

This discussion board post examines the measles outbreak in Madagascar and the effectiveness of vaccination programs. The assignment begins with an introduction to the importance of immunization and the current controversy surrounding it. It then provides background information on the measles outbreak in Madagascar, including the number of cases and fatalities. The post delves into the prevention strategies currently in place, such as active surveillance and targeted immunization campaigns, and assesses their adequacy. The assignment also incorporates key public health terms like herd immunity and cost-benefit analysis to evaluate the strategies. The author suggests best practices, including reinforcing routine immunization and making vaccination mandatory. The assignment concludes with a list of references to support the information presented, focusing on research and reports from the World Health Organization and other relevant sources.

Running Head: VACCINATION PROGRAMS
Vaccination Programs
Student’s Name
University Affiliation
Date

VACCINATION PROGRAMS
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Vaccination programs
Introduction
Immunization has tremendously reduced the burden of communicable and infectious
diseases. Only clean water which has also been viewed as a fundamental human right, performs
better. Ironically, a vocal antiimmunization lobby thrives currently despite the undisputable
success of immunization programs against previously fearsome and dangerous diseases like
Tuberculosis which are now rare both in the developing and developed nations (Kluger, 2019).
Many various types of objections have been raised. A number of people have raised questions
concerning the scientific qualifications of mass vaccination whereas others have emphasized on
the personal liberty and objected to the paternalistic behavior of government imposition of what
is considered as an individual health choice (Killmond, 2017). Paradoxically, immunization
safety usually gets more public attention relative to immunization effectiveness, yet independent
researchers and professionals and World Health Organization have shown that immunization are
more safer than the therapeutic medicines.
Measles outbreak in Madagascar
Background information
In January 2019, World Health Organization announced that they will support the
Ministry of Public Health of Madagascar to fight the bizarre large outbreak of measles. The
country last faced outbreak of measles in 2003 in which 62234 cases were reported (Mensah et
al., 2019). Since then, the country has seen a decline in the number of measles cases until the
present outbreak. Between October 2018 and January 2019, 19540 cases of measles and 40
‘facility-based’ mortality (fatality ratio: 0.3%) were reported by the Madagascar’s Ministry of

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Public Health. In the present epidemic, it has been established that children who aged between
one and fourteen years account for 65% of the total number of measles cases.
Prevention strategies
The Madagascar’s Ministry of Public Health is coordinating activities to minimize the
outbreak with the support of World Health Organization as well as other relevant partners
(Winter et al., 2018). The preventive measures currently put in place entail promoting active
surveillance, application of global measles programmatic risk assessment tool which targets
priority areas of immunization.
Adequacy of the preventive strategies
Eradication campaigns have been launched in the country to target over 94% of the
children between the ages1 of nine and sixty months. With few cases of herd immunity observed
among the population and after conducting the cost benefit analysis of vaccination program, the
government has increased vaccination measures to eliminate the measles in the country.
Best practices for measles
The best option for Madagascar is to reinforce the routine immunization activities in line
with the national programs of immunization for all the children who are below 11 months old.
Previous cases in which vaccination was successful has motivated the government, the WHO and
other partners to improve their vaccination programs in the country. The government should,
therefore, formulate policies to make immunization mandatory.

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References
Killmond, M. (2017). Why Is Vaccination Different? A Comparative Analysis of Religious
Exemptions. Columbia Law Review, 117(4), 913–952. Retrieved from
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=bth&AN=122972022&site=ehost-live
Kluger, J. (2019). The Vaccine Battlegrounds. TIME Magazine, 193(24), 38–43. Retrieved from
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=bth&AN=136963550&site=ehost-live
Mensah, K., Heraud, J. M., Takahashi, S., Winter, A. K., Metcalf, C. J. E., & Wesolowski, A.
(2019). Seasonal gaps in measles vaccination coverage in Madagascar. Vaccine, 37(18),
2511–2519. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2019.02.069
Winter, A. K., Wesolowski, A. P., Mensah, K. J., Ramamonjiharisoa, M. B., Randriamanantena,
A. H., Razafindratsimandresy, R., … Metcalf, C. J. E. (2018). Revealing Measles
Outbreak Risk with a Nested Immunoglobulin G Serosurvey in Madagascar. American
Journal of Epidemiology, 187(10), 2219–2226. Retrieved from
https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwy114