In the interest of promoting more robust discourse around the importance of regular vaccinations for serious but preventable contagious conditions, MHA@GW is hosting a guest post series in honor of National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM). During the month of August, we’re featuring blogs from thought leaders and advocates who were asked to answer the question, “Why immunize in 2015?” You can read an excerpt of Vaccines Today Editor Gary Finnegan’s piece here, and be sure to read on to explore more posts. MHA@GW is the online master of health administration from the Milken Institute School of Public Health at the George Washington University.

“Europe has a lot going for it. Health services are, for the most part, excellent and easily accessible. Immunization is free and childhood vaccine schedules are well established. The trouble is that most Europeans think vaccination begins and ends in childhood. The consequences of this are very real.

Take Europe’s ongoing measles outbreak. There have been 4,000 cases in the European Union and thousands more in neighboring countries. 70 percent of the EU cases have been in German and Italy — two of the most developed nations in the world.Many children have caught the virus and, tragically, a toddler in Berlin died from the disease. But there are also many outbreaks in adolescents and young adults — most of whom missed out on crucial vaccines when the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) uptake dropped in the late 1990s.” Read the rest of his post here.

Sophia Bernazzani is the community manager for MHA@GW and MPH@GW, both offered by the Milken Institute School of Public Health at the George Washington University. She’s passionate about global health, nutrition, and sustainability. Follow her on Twitter.