The Immune System And Vaccine Action

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Question 1 - The immune system and vaccine action
As immunisers we need to have a thorough understanding of the immune system and the vaccine action. Immunity is the protection and ultimately the response that occurs when a person has been vaccination or has been affected with an infection and ultimately recovered. (Australian Academy of Science 2012; Brown & Edwards 2010). The immune system consists of millions of white blood cells, these contain the materials that initiate immune responses these being identified as antigens (Brown & Edwards 2010). Antigens exist on the surface of all of the body’s cells, and are unique to each individual that ensures the body is capable to recognize anything that is foreign (Black 2008; Brown & Edwards 2010). By being able to recognize and respond to antigens that are regarded foreign to the body and consequently they stimulate an immune response, the immune system is able to protect itself from harm (Australian Academy of Science 2012).
According to the Australian Academy of science (2012) Immunological memory allows the adaptive immune system to rapidly clear infections that it has encountered before, this can be both naturally or artificially. Following an immune response some T-cells remain and serve as “memory cells” so if the body comes in contact with the same antigen in the future the immune system can act swiftly and more efficiently to prevent the infection occurring. (Black 2008). The Australian Academy of Science (2012) states that when the body encounters a disease naturally the immune system launches a non-specific and then specific response to the foreign body, although the person may still experience the signs and symptoms of the disease. Where...

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...k et al. 2012). The Australian Government produces many resources as a responsibility to encourage vaccination some being; “Understanding Childhood Immunisation” (2012) booklet that goes through the variety of immunisations, side effects and common questions in a easy to comprehend format. These can be accessed both on the Internet and hard copy at government and medical agencies. Immunisation Myths and Realities: Responding to arguments against immunisation by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing (2008) and The Australian Immunisation Handbook (2013), Made and created in Australia resources that are state and territory specific. Local Maternal and Child Health Services (2013) These services are free of charge and come as age specific documents to get a holistic understanding of immunization and what to expect when getting your child vaccinated.

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