Measles and Our Family

A few weeks ago, I missed a week of work because our youngest child was hospitalized with measles, and it can be said that all of this happened because I underestimated the importance of getting vaccinated. Our family is pro-vaccine, but the pandemic made us hesitant to visit hospitals, especially when the Covid situation was at its peak. This led to our youngest child missing one vaccination, the Measles and MMR shot.

Measles may be seen as a "common" disease, but in reality, it is a frightening illness (especially for children) because of the high risk of complications and even death. Indonesia is currently experiencing a measles and polio outbreak, according to one of our experts, Pak Salman Noersiwan Bachtiar , who is currently traveling back and forth to Aceh to cover the mobile vaccination activities (https://www.who.int/indonesia/news/photos/detail/visiting-homes-to-curb-polio-in-aceh). If I had to take a guess why measles is treated like a common disease, I'd say?because simply our society cannot differentiate between measles and roseola, and even chickenpox (for the differences, please refer to dr. Apin's post on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CniazTGPFxr/).

Our experience in the hospital for the past week was quite tense. We decided to go to the ER because our child had been experiencing fluctuating fever for a week before. From the beginning, I admitted to the nurses and doctors at the ER that our youngest had missed the measles vaccine, and so she was placed in a special isolation ER room and during her stay in the ward after. During her treatment, various specialists examined my child's condition besides her pediatrician. They are the ENT doctors, ophthalmologists, and pulmonary doctors. Various diagnostic tests were also performed, such as blood tests, urine tests, x-rays, and even several ultrasounds to detect the possibility of complications from the start.

I was fortunate that my child recovered with minimal complications. This was possible because we have the privilege of living in the capital city with access to the best hospitals in Indonesia that can be paid for by insurance. It was also fortunate that my husband Ivan Ahda M.Si. agreed to WFH (Work From Hospital) full-time to help me take care of our child (not to mention, his experience sleeping on the floor for a full week), given that Indonesian culture tends to see child-rearing as solely the mother's responsibility. Plus, my privilege of being able to take a week off work (without using my vacation days) because I own my own company. I can't count my blessings, really.

However, all of these conveniences cannot be a permanent solution for all of us the middle class workers, including myself in other situations. Therefore, this article hopes to serve as a public service reminder for pro-vaccine parents to check their children's vaccination records and catch up on any missed shots.

For parents who are still hesitant about vaccinating their children, or even refuse vaccines altogether, all I can say is please learn more about the importance of prevention over treatment, at least for the sake of the children we love, more than we love ourselves.

I understand some of the reasons why many people refuse or have negative assumptions about vaccination or even healthcare businesses in general, while supporting other businesses in other sectors. It could be due to misinformation (reading a lot of fake news without fairly studying it), personal fear and anxiety, conspiracy theory, bad experiences with healthcare facilities, as well as political, religious, and social beliefs.

Contrary to other industries that is easier for us to trust businesses that are not associated with personal and emotional threats such the healthcare industry was. We easily support and have positive associations with and willing to pay high prices for technology companies, food & restaurants, properties, clothing, and other manufacturing products that also operate in the primary needs.

Therefore, I would like to convey a message to the healthcare industry players to prioritize customer trust in every service provided. That is the only key so that we can all together reduce the negative association within this industry. Since the pandemic has affected all aspects of our lives, I have become more convinced that our ability to survive in the future will be closely related to health issues. How about you? Tell me what you're thinking.

Well, the decision is yours, but please stay healthy and let's continue to remind each other!