Vaccination is a part of preventive medicine, an essential strategy to help people live more profuse and healthier lives. There is always little use of vaccination in grown-ups. As family physicians, we take full responsibility to explain the importance of vaccines to our visiting patients. Vaccines are safe, effective and help prevent disease and even death, especially in the elderly, people with chronic conditions, and weakened immune systems. Some of the vaccines for preventable diseases in adults are – Pneumococcal Vaccine, Flu Vaccine, Hepatitis-B vaccine, Meningococcal vaccine, HIB vaccine, HPV, Typhoid, Chickenpox, Rabies, etc.
All adults require tetanus and diphtheria (Td) immunizations at 10-year intervals throughout their lives. Women 25 years of age or younger should be immunized against human papillomavirus (HPV). All adults 65 years of age or older, as well as persons 2 to 65 years of age who have diabetes or chronic heart, lung, liver, or kidney disorders, need protection against pneumococcal disease and should consult their healthcare providers regarding this vaccine.