Secretary inspects anti-polio drive

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Health Secretary Mehmood Aslam Wazir visited various designated polio vaccination spots during Eid and inspected the ongoing inoculation process. He visited various toll plazas and check posts to witness the vaccination process of children.

He also listened to the problems of polio workers and assured them of cooperation. Stressing upon workers to realize their responsibilities in the national cause of polio eradication, he directed them to be vigilant to inoculate children who may have missed vaccination due to their travel from one place to another. The Health Secretary also urged transporters to cooperate with polio workers deputed at toll plazas and check posts for vaccination.

In Ghura Bakhail, Bannu district, where three polio cases had been detected recently, around 30 per cent of children still need to be vaccinated.

This was revealed at a meeting held under the leadership of Health Minister Qasim Ali Shah, titled ‘Reaching the Unreached’, organized under the auspices of the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) and the Polio Eradication Initiative (PEI).

The briefing, organised by ACASUS, focused on collaboration efforts in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. Attending the meeting were Special Secretary Health for Polio Eradication Abdul Basit, Director General Health Services Dr Shaukat Ali, Deputy Director Provincial Emergency Operations Centre Zeeshan and personnel from all district Emergency Operation Centres who participated online.

Minister Qasim Shah highlighted the significant responsibility falling on parents of unvaccinated children. The parents, he said, lacked sufficient awareness on the issue which posed a risk to the entire nation, adding that such awareness was essential to avoid international sanctions.

The federal government will be engaged in discussions regarding these issues, he observed.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 14^th, 2024.