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, they featured blogs from thought leaders and advocates who were asked to answer the question “why immunize in 2015?” Read an excerpt from KC Kids Doc Natasha Burgert’s piece here, and read on to explore more posts on their blog. MHA@GW is the online master of health administration from the Milken Institute School of Public Health at the George Washington University.

“Our generation is losing access to these historically important stories of death and suffering from disease. The memories of lives that were taken away too early by now-preventable illnesses are hidden away in our own family trees. The retelling of the desperate pleas for a miracle is becoming silent.

We are now witnessing the consequences of this fading oral history.

Today’s news does not tell stories about the miracle of vaccines. The narrative has changed from reports of successful vaccines to waves of warning. The opportunity to protect our children from disease is being incorrectly framed as oppressive and dangerous. Meanwhile, the success of public health initiatives is being compromised. Outbreaks of vaccine-preventable disease are increasing. More kids are getting sick.

Today we each have an opportunity to change this trend. We live in a time our grandparents could only imagine — with one click we can reach our families, friends and entire community. We can let others know a way to stay protected and safe from tragedy.” Read the rest of her 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.