Not long ago I was sent an article concerning the most recent convening of the World Health Assembly, which took place in Geneva Switzerland on Friday May 21, 2010.

The conference covered a large range of topics and generally spent its time reviewing the World Health Organization’s priorities for the future.  The status of measles worldwide was one such topic, whose progress the article continues on to detail. It describes how the measles initiative over the last decade has saved millions of lives, reduced mortality, and how their work has lowered the number of measles related deaths by 78 percent worldwide between 2000 and 2008.

It shocked me to learn not of the great successes achieved in eradiating measles via the measles initiative but of the steep precipice the world stands on with the realization that we could easily backslide, undoing all these achievements. This is all due to a decline in both funding and political support for the measles initiative meaning fewer children worldwide are receiving vaccines.

This past semester as a sophomore in college, I took a survey course on the continent of Africa and naturally disease was a topic we covered. I remember distinctly how my professor stressed the idea that measles was a disease that had seen great advances in prevention but that recent outbreaks had proven how quickly the disease can spread when attention is taken away. However, what I had not realized until reading this article is how serious the problem really is. I was truly frightened when the article described that by the time I graduate from college, measles could have resurfaced to the point that no proof survives of the work done by the measles initiative.

So now the real question is what do we do with this information? Are we supposed to give up and just allow measles to claim more and more lives each year? Pessimists might argue that it is pointless to fight a battle with odds stacked so high in favor of the other side. But to me that seems to be a lousy outlook on life. I take this turn of events as proof that the measles initiative needs to keep working and even come back stronger than before. Call me optimistic but I believe that even one life saved is better than none.

It is especially important for the Red Cross to continue to play such a prominent role in the measles initiative and I’m proud to say that the St. Louis Chapter is doing their part to contribute to the future successes of the program. We are currently in the process of organizing a fundraiser for the initiative so make sure to keep an ear out for details of that event!

If you want more information on the measles initiative you can visit the website at www.measlesinititive.org. 

Sarah Zimmerman is an intern with the International Services department of the St. Louis Area Chapter.