PENNSYLVANIA, USA — According to the World Health Organization (WHO), childhood vaccination rates have dropped since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This leaves much of the population at risk for once-nearly-eradicated diseases like whooping cough.
"We've been giving these vaccines since the 1950s," Dr. Moopen said. "We had eradicated measles in the year 2000, but now here we are in the middle of an outbreak."
People are being infected with measles, polio—which hadn't been seen in the U.S. for more than a decade before it was detected in New York City’s wastewater—and other preventable diseases with more and more frequency as the world opens back up and people are once again in close contact with each other.
"We recently had a patient who had Streptococcus bacteremia, which would have been prevented by the Prevnar vaccine," Dr. Moopen said. "It's still here, and if it's not here, it's just a plane ride away."
Suspicion surrounding the COVID-19 vaccines may have bled into suspicions of vaccines in general. Dr. Moopen reminds parents that vaccines are extremely safe and can save lives.
"We do hear about safety, we hear about mercury," she said. "All of these things have been changed. Vaccines are extremely safe. We've made them safer over the years and it's much better to be vaccinated than to come down with these diseases, because that can be life-threatening."
Even though some diseases have been all but squashed by vaccinations, they are still alive and have the potential to infect people, especially those who tend to be more vulnerable—babies, the elderly, the immuno-compromised.
"I like to think of vaccinated people as a force field," Dr. Moopen said. "The more you have, the stronger that field is. They're protecting themselves, as well as vulnerable people in society. When you have holes in that force field, that's when the viruses and bacteria can get in, and you can see outbreaks of diseases that we haven't seen in many, many years."
Dr. Moopen recommends speaking directly to your child's pediatrician about any vaccine questions or concerns you may have, as they have dedicated their lives to children's health.