#memory
Dr Jonas Salk.
23 June is the death anniversary of Dr Jonas Salk ( 1914-1995).
Dr Salk will be remembered in history as the inventor of a vaccine for the deadly polio virus.
The American virologist and researcher joined the School of Medicine of Pittsburgh University in 1947, and dedicated his life to the discovery of a vaccine for Polio.
The success of the vaccine was declared in 1955, and Salk was hailed as the ” miracle maker.
The vaccine was available in 90 countries by 1959, and the USA became polio free 25 years after the vaccine became available.
An oral Polio vaccine was developed by Albert Sabine in 1961.
Rotary International declared in the 1980s , it’s gigantic commitment to make the world polio free. It has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to manufacture and make available polio vaccine in all the countries affected by the dreaded disease. Rotary has received the support of the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation in it’s noble humanitarian venture.
The whole world has now been declared Polio free , except for a few minor pockets in the conflict zones in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Humanity is indebted to Dr Jonas Salk for refusing to obtain a patent for the Polio vaccine, thereby enabling the nations to provide the vaccine at a very low cost.
– Rtn.Joy Kallivayalil.
p.s:
As a Rotarian I am personally proud to be associated with the Polio Plus program of Rotary International ever since its inception in the 1980s.
