Diphtheria cases a result of poor immunisation

Disease has claimed nine lives with some cases from the FR region and some from Bannu division

PESHAWAR: Deplorable status of routine immunization and a shortage of vaccinators has endangered lives of more than 19,000 children, under the age of two, with the Diphtheria disease in the Frontier Region (FR) of Bannu division.

Official sources said that there are only nine vaccinators in the division. Out of the nine vaccinators four have been provided by the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) and five are from Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI).

These individuals have been assigned to administer vaccines to children against nine diseases and one of them is Diphtheria. The sources added that the actual number of vulnerable children is unknown. They added that the 19,000 figure of the children below the age of two was just an estimate which was obtained from the polio eradication programme.



A senior health official while talking to The Express Tribune said, “Diphtheria has claimed nine lives with some cases from the FR region and some from Bannu division.” He added that the cases were reported to the officials concerned and action had been taken.

However, he questioned “why do we always need a catastrophe first before any action is taken?”

The official who spoke on the condition of anonymity, wondered how is it possible that nine vaccinators can carry out the vaccination task in the division when FR’s population is 0.3 million.

He added that how can one expect a quality campaign when vaccinators cannot move in the area due to the unstable law and order situation. An official, based in Peshawar, who has been dealing with the health sector of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) said some cases were reported among the temporarily displaced children and after receiving the cases a vaccination campaign had been initiated.

However, he believed that these cases did not necessarily come from North Waziristan since the children had been infected in the camp. He said that they had launched a campaign for vaccination in view of this situation.

He added that the action was taken after they received a number of letters regarding the situation and that some 1,700 children had been vaccinated in the TDP camps. He too said that the main cause of the disease was poor routine immunization.

The Agency Surgeon Dr Noman Wazir confirmed that the first case of the disease was a 14-year-old boy living in the TDP camp. He verified that the case led to the vaccination campaign adding that the boy was out of danger.

Dr Wazir stated that only two cases were confirmed from FR of Bannu adding that the administration is still carrying out a campaign in Bakka Khail and Jani Khail areas of the region.

The doctor said, “Only two children died of Diphtheria and two others were snake bite cases.”

DHO Bannu Azam Wazir said until they received laboratory tests they could not confirm whether the children had died because of Diphtheria. He added that the case-led campaign was carried out with the availability of precautionary medicine on the spot.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 10^th, 2016.