This study aims to serve as a unique consolidated source in Turkey?s vaccination history and as an example for other countries by objectively revealing the change in mortality and morbidity rates in Turkey following the beginning of vaccination without asserting any claim on the benefits or risks of vaccines. This unbiased research will also help health professionals identify the challenges more easily when they face with the people who hesitate to vaccinate their children.
Descriptive research design is adopted in this study. The coverages of vaccinations, mortality and, morbidity rates were identified through a retrospective analysis of the data provided from the Ministry of Health of Turkey. The data provided by the Turkish Statistical Institute were used for the identification of the population by the year. Mortality and morbidity rates were calculated based on these data.
Morbidity rates, mortality rates, and vaccine covarages are all presented by the years. Successful interventions have been observed in the eradication of polio, the elimination of maternal neonatal tetanus and also in combating with other diseases. A decline in pertussis mortality from 0.59 to 0.1 along with a decline in diphtheria morbidity under 0.0001 were recognized; additionally the last death due to poliomyelitis was observed in 1998. Only 4 deaths occurred in the measles epidemic in 2013. With the start of vaccination for Rubella and Mumps, while the Rubella morbidity rate was 3,12 and the mumps mortality rate was 25 per 100.000. It was also succeeded that morbidity and mortality rates of those diseases decreased to 0 level. Also,no death due to neonatal tetanus has been recorded since 2012.
The present study demonstrates that many possible diseases and deaths have been prevented through vaccination studies. In this regard, this study demonstrating the importance of vaccination presents that all individials in the society have a responsibility in this scope when the communicable diseases and wars are taken into consideration. The main responsibility is to ensure theirself and their children be vaccinated against the communicable diseases which are risky for society health.

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