All set for anti-polio campaign

Kids to be vaccinated in seven Punjab districts

LAHORE:

A special polio eradication campaign response phase will commence on Monday in seven districts of Punjab.

Punjab Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) Coordinator Khizer Afzaal said on Sunday that the campaign would cover the Faisalabad, Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan, Rahim Yar Khan, Faisalabad, Kasur and Okara districts.

It will continue for a week in Faisalabad and five days in the other districts.

Over 30,000 polio workers and supervisors will participate in the drive to immunise 4.5 million children under the age of five.

The EOC coordinator directed the district teams to make the campaign successful, saying the special effort would be helpful in blocking poliovirus recirculation in Punjab.

“Amid poliovirus circulation in other provinces, Punjab has not reported any polio case since October 2020, which is an achievement of the programme. But movement of population from core reservoirs to Punjab was one of the major causes of virus importation in Punjab,” cautioned the coordinator.

He said the programme’s health workers on the forefront continued to reach children in some of the hardest to reach areas with the singular goal to reach every child with the polio vaccine and ensure a polio-free world for future generations.

He also cautioned the workers against complacency, stressing that the country could not afford to let poliovirus return to the province.

Afzaal underscored that the Punjab government, through the health department, was ensuring the safety and security of the frontline workers.

The EOC coordinator reiterated that multiple doses of polio drops offered the best protection against the virus, highlighting the need to vaccinate every child to achieve population immunity and prevent virus circulation.

“Parents must welcome polio teams whenever they come to knock at their doors. Local communities must be reassured that immunisation is a safe and effective means of safeguarding their children against this virus. With dedication and hard work, Punjab aims to remain polio-free in 2024,” the EOC head reiterated.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 25^th, 2024.