GUJRANWALA: Three people were injured on Tuesday when a polio team was attacked in Gujranwala, Express News reported.
On August 31, the Gujranwala district health office had announced that a polio vaccination campaign would be launched on September 29.
Despite the number of polio cases increasing with each passing day, the authorities have failed to put a concrete plan in place. Polio workers are frequently targeted in the country, while many parents refuse to let health workers administer polio drops to their children.
For this year alone, the total number of reported polio cases stands at 174 in Pakistan - one of only three countries in the world where polio is still endemic.
Polio drive underway in Bahawalpur
Some 587,000 children under the age of five will be administered anti-polio vaccines during an anti-polio campaign, which is currently underway in Bahawalpur.
According to District Coordination Officer Bahawalpur Imran Sikandar Baloch, the campaign will continue until October 1. Baloch said mobile teams are operating in Cholistan and other remote areas where a door-to-door campaign is taking place.
“Besides ,1019 mobile teams, 154 teams are also functioning,” he said, adding, “Fifteen teams are operating at bus stands, airports, railway stations and toll plazas, while 15 other teams are working in markets and other public places.”
Further, he added that some 4,387 children from flood affected areas have been administered with anti-polio vaccines, while 21,000 people were provided with free medicine after a medical check-up.
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@Oats: I wish that it is like this. I pray that sense prevails all over Pakistan and this anti-Polio drive is successful all over the country. However it is the responsibility of community concerned to protect these teams. May Allah make Pakistan Polio free country, Ameen.
This situation requires massive funding. Ways and incentives must be devised to lure the patents to bring their children to vaccination camps rather than sending vaccination teams. Permanent Vaccination Centers should be set up in cities, town, bus stops, railway stations etc. and incentives should be provided to lure parents to bring their children to these centers. Reimbursing both parents and their children their travel costs when they bring their children to the vaccination centers and also providing them some other incentives like subsidized food or electricity (even giving them free solar powered lamps) may work. Procedures should be in place to ensure that these subsidies are given only to families that bring all their children to the vaccination centers and also complete the full course of vaccinations. If subsidized food or electricity is provided, it can start from the day the parents bring their children to the camps and continue for a period of 1 - 3 years after the child completes the full vaccinations. These are just some basic ideas and can be improved. Luring the parents to bring their children to vaccination camps would enable government to provide better security to the vaccination teams and also ensure that the vaccinations are also kept stored properly. It would be very cost effective also. International agencies will be reluctant to provide such subsidies but the government can fund it if they curtain on other expenditure like metro bus projects etc. The government was providing free lap-top computers and solar powered lamps to students and can devise an incentive model based on those. Depending on Fatwas or religious edicts will not work. Those religious edicts only work to promote a bad cause and never for a good cause. The government has tried even through a Fatwas of Saudi clerics and has failed. Pakistan can wipe out polio in 3-5 years if it can lure parents to bring their children to the vaccination camps instead of sending vaccination teams to villages and remote areas. Once the trend of getting vaccinated takes root, everything will become simple and easy.
@Muhammad Shoaib: I am sure this is an isolated incident. I can't think of anyone who would wish to prevent polio vaccination in Punjab. The general public there is supportive of expanded vaccination programs. I suspect there must be more to this story, even perhaps some personal rivalry.
Will any one explain what is the logic behind targeting the polio teams.
So this disease of attacking Polio teams has now spread over to Punjab, very sad.