This week has been a nightmare for one elementary school in Clinton, SC. The Department of Health & Environmental Control confirmed that a student at Clinton Elementary School has contracted whooping cough. Anybody who entered the school between August 16 and 18 could possible be exposed to the disease. In case you aren't aware of what whooping cough is or how it got the infamous name, the Center for Disease Control defined it as:

"A highly contagious respiratory disease. It is caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis."

"Pertussis is known for uncontrollable, violent coughing which often makes it hard to breathe. After fits of many coughs, someone with pertussis often needs to take deep breaths which result in a "whooping" sound. Pertussis can affect people of all ages, but can be very serious, even deadly, for babies less than a year old."

Yes, it was caused by a bacteria the child was exposed to. Yes, we do have ways to prevent bacteria from spreading (i.e. frequently wash your hands, sneeze or cough into your elbow instead of hand, etc.). It is impossible to guarantee that your child will not get whooping cough--or any other equally debilitating disease--unless you do one, simple thing. What could that one thing, that so many responsible parents do for their children, be?

They choose vaccinate their kids.

If you have a baby: DTap. If you're an adult and want to protect yourself and those around you: DTap. I cannot possibly fathom why anybody, would opt out of vaccinating their child, let alone criticize vaccinations. Because of vaccines, the United States is polio free.

A huge reason as to why some parents refuse vaccines for their children are the studies supposedly linking vaccinations to autism. This is not the case. The CDC has not confirmed any study linking the two, in fact, they have refuted such claims. Even if I was susceptible enough to believe something as ludicrous as that, I would still rather have my child vaccinated. In my opinion, a child with autism can live a happy life, while a child fighting a disease, such as whooping cough, will be too sick to play outside and too contagious to be around other people.

Just because whooping cough is not a common disease does not mean that you cannot contract it.

It is neglectful to refuse vaccines on your child's behalf. It is a threat to the public to refuse vaccinating your child. Every person that goes around unvaccinated poses as a risk to all the people around them. Maybe you're okay with possibly exposing your kid to a disease that is damn close to 100% preventable, or maybe you didn't know enough about all the good vaccines do for each and every one of us. Nevertheless, it is not too late to get vaccinated--whether you want to protect yourself or your child.

Now, I am not trying to attack the parents of the child who has whooping cough in Clinton. It is very possible that their child has received the pertussis vaccination and still caught the disease; but due to the success rates of vaccines, it is unlikely that is the case. More people need to be educated on what can happen when they don't vaccinate their children. It literally makes your child a walking hazard with the potential to infect everybody should he or she contract a serious disease. I strongly encourage everybody to read more into what kind of diseases vaccinations can protect against.

We have a way to keep people healthy, so why are we not taking advantage of it?