Immunizations & Infections

Getting vaccinated is one of the most important things you can do to safeguard your lung health.

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Closeup of a health professional administering a shot to a patients arm.

Why are vaccines so important?

We’re protected from infectious disease by our immune system, which destroys disease-causing germs – also known as pathogens – when they invade the body. If our immune system isn’t quick or strong enough to prevent pathogens taking hold, then we get ill. We use vaccines to stop this from happening.

A vaccine provides a controlled exposure to a pathogen, training and strengthening the immune system so it can fight that disease quickly and effectively in future. By imitating an infection, the vaccine protects us against the real thing.

Vaccines are our most effective health intervention

They prevent an estimated 2–3 million deaths worldwide every year. But, a further 1.5 million lives could be saved annually with better global vaccine coverage.

What vaccines do for us:

In some regions or populations, dangerous diseases are constantly present (endemic) – but even in developed countries with accessible healthcare, vaccines are critical to stemming the spread of infectious disease such as measles.

Our immune systems are strongest in adulthood, meaning that young children and the elderly are particularly susceptible to dangerous infections.

If enough of a population is vaccinated, infections can’t spread from person to person, which means that everyone has a high level of protection – even those who don’t have immunity. This is known as herd protection (or herd immunity). It’s important because not everyone can be directly protected with vaccines – some people are unresponsive to them or have allergies or health conditions that prevent them from taking them.

In a world of denser cities, increased international travel, migration and ecological change, the ability of emerging infectious diseases to spread and cause devastation is increasing.

Medicine relies on being able to treat infectious diseases with antimicrobial drugs, such as antibiotics, but overuse and misuse of these drugs is leading to infections becoming resistant to them.

Specific information for those living with a chronic lung condition:

People with chronic respiratory conditions are at higher risk for serious problems from certain vaccine-preventable diseases. BC Lung recommends those with chronic lung disorders, including people who smoke, receive a flu vaccine annually in addition to other routine immunization.

What vaccines do you need?

As information regarding the vaccine and its distribution is evolving, we ask that you visit the www.immunizebc.ca website for up to date information on COVID-19 vaccination.

Get vaccinated every year to protect against seasonal flu.

These vaccines protect against serious pneumococcal diseases. Some types of pneumococcal (bacterial pneumonia) infections are prevented with vaccination. People aged 65 and over only need a single pneumococcal vaccination. This vaccine is not given annually like the flu vaccine. People with a long-term health condition may need just a single one-off pneumococcal vaccination or vaccination every 5 years, depending on their underlying health problem.

This vaccine protects against shingles if you are 50 years or older. At this time, BC does not have a publicly-funded shingles vaccine program. However, the vaccine can be purchased at most pharmacies and travel clinics.

This vaccine protects against tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (whooping cough). To read more about who should receive this vaccine, click here.

Trusted vaccination resources:

The BC Lung Foundation supports BC and Canadian immunization policies. For those looking to inform themselves we recommend consulting the websites of well-respected agencies such as:

Immunize BC

Health Link BC

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