Adults Still Need Vaccination

During this time, you think that vaccination applies to infants and children only. Who would have thought that adults would still need this protective injection? In certain circumstances, adults require repeat vaccine injections every few periods. By receiving the vaccine, you not only protect yourself from disease but also help prevent its spread.

Mandatory Vaccinations

Vaccination is the process of injecting a disease-causing microorganism that has been weakened or killed into your body, or injecting a laboratory-made protein similar to that microorganism. Vaccination aims to improve the immune system. So that when you contract the germ of an actual disease, the body is ready to block it, so it does not develop into a disease. In Indonesia, there are five types of vaccines that must be accepted, namely hepatitis B, BCG, Polio, MMR, and DTP. But then, the Indonesian Ministry of Health replaced the MMR vaccine with the MR vaccine. If you haven't received it as a child, you must get these types of vaccines.

Hepatitis B

Based on the data and information center of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia in 2014, Indonesia is a high endemic area for hepatitis B, the second largest in Southeast Asia after Myanmar with an estimated 28 million Indonesians infected with Hepatitis B and C. That is the reason the hepatitis B vaccine is compulsory for the Indonesian population . This vaccine is especially recommended for those of you who work in hospitals or health facilities that are at risk of contact with blood or bodily fluids, frequently mutually sexual partners, suffer from sexually transmitted diseases, drug users, and for men who have sex with men. The number of vaccines you need is three doses. The distance between the first and second doses is a month. The third dose is given at least two months after getting the second dose of vaccine injection.

BCG

This vaccine is useful to prevent you from contracting tuberculosis or TB. Giving this vaccine only needs to be done once. Without exception, everyone will benefit from this vaccination, considering that in 2015 there were an estimated 10.4 million new TB cases in Indonesia. Adults can get the BCG vaccine provided that they have never received a BCG vaccine as a child, have no history of TB, do not have HIV, do not suffer from deadly diseases such as leukemia or other malignant tumors, and are not undergoing immunosuppressive treatment.

Polio

Polio is a contagious disease. The virus that causes this disease can attack the nervous system and cause paralysis. Oral polio vaccine (OPV) is given at birth, age 2, 4, 6, 18 months (or age 2, 3, 4 months according to government programs). As for the injectable polio vaccine (IPV) given at ages 2, 4, 6-18 months and 6-8 years. If the polio immunization is late, do not repeat the gift from the beginning. But go ahead and complete it according to schedule, no matter what the delay interval is from the previous administration. But for those of you who have only gotten a polio vaccine once or twice during childhood, you are required to complete the polio vaccine sequence as an adult. For those of you who have never received a polio vaccination at all, it is recommended to get a polio vaccine injection of three doses. The distance of the first and second dose injections is one to two months. While the third dose can be given 6-12 months after the second dose. If you have taken four doses of polio vaccine as a child, you are advised to get a one-dose injection of polio booster vaccine. This boost injection is valid for life.

MR

MR vaccine is a combination of measles and rubella vaccines. MR vaccine is given to prevent diseases caused by the measles virus and German measles. As is known, measles and rubella are infectious diseases caused by viruses. Transmission of both diseases is usually through the airways, usually because there is direct contact with an infected patient through coughing or sneezing. The MR vaccine program is a priority of the Indonesian government as a form of efforts to control measles and rubella, due to the dangers of severe and deadly complications. Therefore, children who have been immunized with the MMR vaccine still need to get the MR vaccine to ensure full immunity against measles and rubella. MR vaccine is given to all children aged 9 months to less than 15 years during the MR immunization campaign. Furthermore, MR immunization is included in the routine immunization schedule and is given to children aged 9 months, 18 months, and grade 1 elementary school / equivalent.

Tdap

This vaccine can prevent you from getting diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis or whooping cough. It contains dead microorganisms. DTP is a vaccine version that also prevents these three conditions but for children. This vaccine is recommended for those of you who have never received a DTP vaccination as a child, especially for those of you who work in hospitals, pregnant women who are at 27 to 36 weeks of pregnancy, and who care for babies under the age of one year. It is recommended to inject a booster vaccine every 10 years to prevent you from getting diphtheria and tetanus.

Recommended Vaccinations

In addition to the five mandatory vaccinations above, there are several types of vaccine injections that are recommended.

Influenza

Influenza or flu is a type of mild disease and often occurs. Although mild, the flu can sometimes trigger complications that might cause death. This type of vaccination should be done every year for one dose. Patients with conditions such as asthma, diabetes, epilepsy, heart disease, liver and kidney can reduce the risk of catching a cold and its complications by receiving a flu vaccine every year.

Pneumococcus

Pneumococcal vaccine can prevent you from getting blood poisoning, meningitis, and pneumonia or pneumonia. These three diseases can cause death. Vaccination is the best way to prevent it. There are two types of pneumococcal vaccines, namely PCV and PPSV. The PCV type vaccine is recommended for young children, while the PPSV for adults and older children. The recommended dose is one dose at age 19-64 years, then one dose at age 65 years. In addition to PPSV, PCV is also recommended for those aged 65 years and over or those with a weak immune system.

HPV

The HPV vaccine can prevent you from developing the human papillomavirus (HPV) virus. The virus can cause cervical cancer in women and genital warts in men and women. Actually, this vaccine is most effective given in childhood or adolescence, before sexually active. But for those of you who haven't got it yet, the HPV virus can still be prevented with this vaccine. In Indonesia, there are 2 types of HPV vaccines namely bivalent and tetravalent in circulation. Bivalent contains 2 types of HPV virus (16 and 18) which can prevent cervical cancer, while tetravalent contains 4 types of HPV virus (6,11,16, and 18) which can prevent cervical cancer and genital warts. The administration of HPV vaccine in Indonesia is recommended for adolescent girls starting from the age of 10 years and over. While in some countries, HPV vaccination is also recommended for adolescent boys. The vaccine is given three times with the second vaccine schedule scheduled one or two months after the first injection, depending on the type of vaccine (bivalent or tetravalent), and last 6 months after the first injection. If there is a missed vaccine delivery schedule due to illness or other issues, then the vaccine administration does not have to be repeated from the beginning, just complete the remaining doses.

Varicella

Varicella vaccine can prevent chickenpox disease caused by the varicella zoster virus. You need two doses of this vaccine if you have never gotten it as a child. The injection distance between the first and second doses is at least a month. But if you have already had the chickenpox vaccine once, you only need to take the second dose.

Hepatitis A

Hepatitis A vaccine is recommended for men who have had sex with men. This vaccine should also be given to those who work at food outlets, work with primate animals infected with hepatitis A, become staff in the laboratory, use drugs, or have chronic liver disease. You need two doses of hepatitis A vaccine with an injection distance of at least six months from the first dose.

Elderly Special Vaccination

There is one type of vaccination that is recommended for older people over 60 years or more. This vaccine is called the shingles vaccine and is useful for preventing smallpox. Chickenpox or shingles is a painful skin rash. But with vaccination, your risk of this disease can be reduced by up to 50 percent. This vaccine is only designed to protect you from shingles, not protect you from other forms of herpes, such as genital herpes. You are advised to get one dose of shingles vaccine at the age of 60 years and over.

Vaccinations for Travelers

Vaccinations for tourists are vaccines or special immunizations given to tourists who will travel to certain areas, both at home and abroad. This immunization is an effective way to prevent infection and the spread of certain types of infectious diseases from an area visited. This vaccine is divided into 3 general categories namely routine vaccines, recommended vaccines, and mandatory vaccines.

• Routine vaccines include diphtheria vaccine, hepatitis B, Hib, human papillomavirus, influenza, measles, mumps, pertussis or whooping cough, rubella, pneumococci, poliomyelitis (polio), rotavirus, tuberculosis (TB), tetanus, and varicella.
• Vaccine recommendations include cholera vaccination, hepatitis A, hepatitis E, Japanese encephalitis, meningococcal disease, rabies, tick-borne encephalitis (TBE), typhoid fever, and yellow fever.
• Mandatory vaccines which include yellow fever, meningococcal and polio vaccines. International health regulations require the yellow fever vaccine as a vaccine that must be given before visiting countries at high risk of developing this disease. While Saudi Arabia requires meningococcal and polio vaccinations for those who will go to Mecca for the Hajj.

Tourists who have not yet completed the vaccination must carry out the vaccination according to the recommendations and rules required by the destination country. Ideally, see your doctor or health specialist 4 or 6 weeks before the scheduled departure, because there are some vaccines that require consecutive administration for several weeks. For those of you with certain medical conditions such as pregnant women, people with asplenia, type 1 and type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, or other cardiovascular disease, HIV infection, liver disease, lung disease including asthma, and kidney disease, as well as people with immune systems the weak, it is recommended to consult a doctor to find out the type of vaccine needed. It's never too late to vaccinate. Visit the nearest hospital immediately, especially if you feel you have not received a complete vaccination as a child. Also tell your medical history and type of work so your doctor can give you the right vaccine shots.