END POLIO NOW
The goal of this particular campaign in Rotary International is very clear, to eradicate polio from the world. There are three priorities for Rotary - fundraising, raising awareness and advocacy. Murray Verso asked the basic question: Why do we bother? He showed us all that polio is never far from the news.
There are many symptoms which show what polio does, especially in an epidemic. You can have the virus without any symptoms. You can experience paralysis, which is common to children. When ingested, it attacks the nervous system, and most commonly attacks the lower limbs. As old as Ancient Egypt, it emerged in the nineteenth century in the form of an epidemic. Sir MacFarlane Burnet nominated three types of polio virus (types two and three have been eradicated from the world). Some people have lived in an iron lung for sixty years. The same doctor who produced the Sabin vaccine (the spoonful of sugar) also assisted in developing the penicillin vaccine.
Together with the Gates Foundation, Rotary International and the US Government, the campaign to eradicate polio continues. In October, the End Polio Now Walk will take place around Albert Park Lake. Returning to the image of the Snakes and Ladders Board, Murray finalised his presentation by stating that even if it is, it is a game that we can win.
The question session following the presentation fielded some interesting aspects of the End Polio Now initiative. Whe referring to the declining rates of immunisation in Australia, Murray highlighted the presence of misinformation. He also mentioned the impact of the social cost of not supporting polio vacciniation programs. Murray gave us a particularly pointed perspective in dealing with polio as a disease in the young and the residual symptoms which elderly patients are compelled to live with. It is a profoundly significant program for Rotary International and for the world.
