1796 marked one of the biggest years in medical history. An English doctor, Edward Jenner, tested the first vaccine. This vaccine was for smallpox and was tested on a healthy eight-year-old boy by rubbing some of the virus onto an open scratch. He developed a single blister but it soon went away. After this the boy was immune to smallpox and therefore never caught the disease. This young man went on to live a healthy life. After Jenner published his findings in a medical journal the practice of vaccinations quickly spread. Since the development of this first vaccine dozens of other vaccines have been created that have saved millions of lives. Even though vaccines have been credited for saving millions of lives some people are still unsure if their life saving benefits out weigh their possible risks. Much of this doubt it due to misinformation and lack of education on the issue. Vaccines are not only safe for children but are necessary to protect their health and others through herd immunity. 

As a modern society we rely on what is called herd immunity or community immunity. Herd immunity is the concept that; if a large majority, usually around 85 percent, of a population is vaccinated from a particular disease then that disease will no longer pose a threat on that community (Helft). A great example of herd immunity is the chicken pox vaccine. The chicken pox vaccine was introduced to the public in 1995. Not only did the chicken pox death rate drop by 97 percent but there were no deaths caused by the chicken pox of children that were too young to be immunized. This is because these children were protected from the disease through herd immunization (Helft). Even though herd immunity is one of the most important reasons to vaccinate ones’ child it is also one of the most forgot reasons. In a survey conducted on parents regarding their decision making process on whether or not to vaccinate their children only 11.3 percent of the participants mentioned herd immunity being part of this decision making process. Not only did very few people take herd immunity into consideration only 45.3 percent of the people surveyed even knew what herd immunity was and understood its basic concept (Sobo). This is an alarming number because so many people rely on the process of community immunity. Because of the chicken pox example, we know that infants rely on herd immunity but it does not stop there. There are many reasons that someone might have to rely on herd immunity like; people with immune disorders, people going though chemotherapy, elderly people, people with HIV and people with other less common health concerns. The reason these individuals must rely on herd immunity is because they are either unable to be vaccinated due to their condition or their immune system has becomes so compromised that the vaccines they have received before no longer work well enough to protect them (Helft).   
