In the last year, the Carolinas have unfortunately seen outbreaks of both whooping cough (pertussis) and most recently, measles — both diseases that were no longer concerns in the United States for many years, thanks to vaccination.
Before the advent of vaccines, we must remember that serious, feared diseases like smallpox, rubella, polio, measles, and diphtheria disabled and killed millions yearly.
Measles is one of the most highly contagious diseases we know of, and it had been declared officially eliminated in the US in 2000, due to the measles vaccine, which was introduced in the 1960s. Now, because of outbreaks in various areas of the country last year and very recently in South Carolina (which has allowed measles to travel to North Carolina), the US may be days or weeks from losing our elimination status.
According to Harvard Medical School’s Harvard Health Publishing, the measles was a childhood rite of passage for most, but that didn’t mean its effects weren’t serious. Measles comes with complications, including pneumonia associated with measles and hearing loss, and before the vaccine, 400-500 people died per year of measles. Its symptoms are also debilitating and include high fever, rash, spots in the mouth, fatigue, and vomiting/diarrhea, and sore throat.
Our region also experienced a rise in whooping cough cases, which has devastating effects for children, including severe coughing spells that can be strong enough to cause vomiting and make it a struggle to breathe. Babies are affected even more severely, due to their size and overall fragility.
This “perfect storm” of diseases that had been made rare due to immunizations is thought to be being fueled by vaccine hesitancy. When fewer people are vaccinated against these diseases, immunity in our communities plummets and herd immunity is lost, making it impossible to stop a disease’s spread.
Even the flu causes deaths each year, and this flu season, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 12,000 will be lost to the flu in this country alone. As with the Covid 19 vaccine, taking the flu vaccine doesn’t guarantee that you won’t get the flu, but if you do, the case won’t be as severe and it’s less likely that you’ll require hospitalization.
I encourage our community members to get their children vaccinated and speak with their pediatricians about the appropriate scheduling for their vaccines. If you feel hesitant about vaccinating your child, have an honest conversation with your physician so you can ask questions and voice your concerns. Fortunately, vaccine science is sound and evidence-based. Immunizations are exhaustively tested for safety, and this is why we were successful for decades at keeping these dreaded illnesses successfully at bay.
Remember too, that vaccines aren’t just for children. Especially as we get older, it’s important for adults to stay up to date on the shingles, pneumonia, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccines, and more.
Since March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, it’s an important reminder to speak with your primary care physician about your individual risk factors. For most adults at average risk, screening should begin at age 45. If you have a family history or other risk factors, your doctor may recommend starting earlier. Screening — particularly colonoscopy — allows colon cancer to be detected early or even prevented, leading to significantly better outcomes. Fortunately, colonoscopies can be performed right here at Transylvania Regional Hospital (TRH) by our general surgeon, Dr. Bais Osborne, as part of our Endoscopic services.
Please join me also in thanking the dedicated TRH physicians who treat our community members — they’re recognized on National Doctors’ Day, March 30, and our Certified Nurses, who are honored on Certified Nurses Day, March 19. Their work and compassion allow patients to get the best care, close to home.
Michele Pilon, MS, BSN, RN, NE-BC, is the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Nursing Officer of Transylvania Regional Hospital. Her diverse professional experience includes service as a bedside nurse and over a decade as a leader at healthcare institutions in Virginia, Florida, and North Carolina. Ms. Pilon earned a Bachelor’s in Nursing from Ohio’s University of Akron and a Masters in Health Services Administration from the University of St. Francis in Illinois; she is also a Board-Certified Nursing Executive.