Parents regret shutting door on polio workers

Many families are now realising their mistake after damage has been done

QUETTA: Sometimes a single mistake changes everything and you regret making it for the rest of your life. The parents whose children have contracted the crippling disease polio in Balochistan this year also find themselves in this situation. They hid their children -- below the age of five or less -- when polio workers knocked their doors for vaccination.

Under the Pakistan Polio Eradication Programme, vaccinators come to the doorsteps of citizens every month just to protect their children from permanent paralysis caused by polio virus.

But still there are parents who take this facility for granted and shut the door on the workers by saying their child is not home, sleeping or already vaccinated.



“When polio teams visited our house, we used to hide our children,” said Muhammad Ismail, uncle of polio-stricken child Imtiaz Ali.

Eight-month-old Imtiaz, who lives in Gandakha tehsil of Jaffarabad district, developed high-grade fever, followed by fits and left lower leg weakness.

He was notified by a volunteer and tested positive for polio.

“It’s our fault that despite the government providing us with the health facility at our doorsteps, we hid our children and not had them vaccinated,” said Ismail.

The previous case in Jaffarabad was reported back in 2014 – an example of how the threat of the polio virus is always looming.

Qilla Abdullah -- the district that was at the highest risk for polio -- also notified a case after remaining polio-free for the last 18 months.

Nine-month-old Haibatullah, is a resident of Union Council Girdi Pinki, also belongs to a family that refused to have him vaccinated.

“What should I do now to cure my child? How he can be fine again?” asked Abdullah, Haibatullah’s father.

However, it is too late now. Abdullah skipped the opportunity to have his child vaccinated against the disease. There is no cure after a child is affected by polio, only damage control measures.



Haibatullah is zero-dose child who was hidden and unregistered. However, in the recent anti-polio drive, Abdullah, realising his mistake, had his two other children vaccinated.

A recent polio victim in Quetta is a child whose family arrived from Qilli Khizan in Shadinzai tehsil of Chiltan Town.

Eighteen-month-old Hikmatullah developed fever and all his limbs have been affected by the disease.

“I am repenting now. If I see polio teams anywhere, I’ll bring them to my house to have my children vaccinated first,” said Hikmatullah’s father.

All the families whose children are suffering from the disease are regretting their mistake now.

The negative propaganda and false rumours have taken away their happiness. They will never be able see their children like others. They are convinced now that vaccination is necessary, but after paying a heavy cost – lifetime disability for their children.

Polio virus is attacking low-immunity children everywhere in Pakistan.

In 2018, 12 children in the country were affected by polio. In 2019, 47 cases have been reported so far. Most of these cases are because of the parents’ reluctance to allow vaccinators to administer polio drops to their children.