Parents refused to get 12,567 children inoculated in K-P

Nowshera DHO lauds efforts to create polio-free region

PESHAWAR:

Parents of 12,567 children refused to get their children inoculated against poliovirus in the recent drive in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

Of the cases, 6,243 refusals were reported from Peshawar followed by 2,039 in Bannu. “The refusals were reported in 16 districts of the province,” an official privy to the development told The Express Tribune. “The report from Torghar will arrive in a day or two. The campaign was not carried out in Swabi district for security reasons.”

Turning their back

Another 102,261 children also missed a three-day polio campaign that was followed by a catch-up campaign as the children were not available when polio teams visited their houses.

Besides Peshawar and Bannu, 1,081 refusal cases were reported in Lakki Marwat, 1,045 in Charsadda, 769 in Nowshera, 479 in Tank, 270 in DI Khan, 181 in Mardan, 178 in Karak, 119 in Hangu, 84 in Kohat, 35 in Mansehra, 33 in Haripur, six in Lower Dir, four Abbottabad and only one refusal case was reported from Malakand.

“This is what we have compiled so far,” Akbar Khan, focal person at the emergency operation cell (EOC), told The Express Tribune. “This is the latest report as but the cases will be below 12,567 soon as we will be immunising children who have been missed”.

He added, “In some areas extended follow-up campaigns are carried out so that all the children are inoculated against the virus.” Akbar added the policy has changed and now the objective was to focus on children who have been missed during previous drives.

Given the low output of the frequent polio drives, the K-P government had decided to launch one last drive in December for 2015 to combat the crippling virus. Officials concerned said a meeting was held at an emergency operations centre where it was decided all the districts were prepared to carry out the campaign.

Show of support

Nowshera District Health Officer Arshad Ahmed Khan appreciated efforts and support of local bodies’ representatives in achieving the goal of a polio-free region.

“Concerted efforts for polio eradication by the district administration, health department and partner organisations have yielded positive results as no new polio case has been reported from the area for the last one year.”

The DHO added all stakeholders in the Expanded Programme on Immunization were on the same page and the issues identified or pointed out by the monitors or teams were addressed there and then. Arshad shed light on the significant role of scholars in molding public opinion.

The target of 0.267 million children was set for the district in the December campaign, for which 927 teams were constituted out of which 772 were mobile, 85 fixed and 70 transit teams.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 23^rd, 2015.