Kids missing vaccine pose challenge

Anti-polio campaign concludes in 12 Punjab districts, continues in Lahore

LAHORE:

Over six million children in Punjab were administered polio drops during the first three days of an ongoing vaccination campaign with a focus on missed children underlining the challenge of ensuring complete protection against the virus that continues to circulate in the country.

The provincial campaign concluded in 12 districts and will continue in Lahore until Sunday as health authorities seek to reach children who were unavailable during initial household visits. The campaign began on November 2 with thousands of frontline workers deployed to visit homes, transport points and other locations where children missed earlier could be found.

Figures released by the Punjab Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) show that more than 900,000 children were vaccinated in Lahore, over 700,000 in Multan and 600,000 in Rawalpindi during the three days.

However, according to sources in the health authorities, an apprehension persists that every child needing vaccination may not be reached despite the efforts of the anti-polio teams, including lady health workers.

A health official said the provincial authorities had not yet shared a district-wise breakdown of the number of children initially missed, parental refusals, those reached through repeat visits or the kids still awaiting vaccination. The figures would help assess the effectiveness of the campaign.

The official said the need for sustained vigilance had become more pressing following the confirmation of Pakistan's eighth polio case of the ongoing year on November 1.

The latest infection was detected in a 13-month old girl in Bara tehsil of Khyber district, raising the number of cases reported from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa in 2026 to six.

Two other cases have been reported from Sindh.

Although Punjab has not recorded any polio case this year, the presence of poliovirus in neighbouring parts of the country and movement of people between provinces continue to pose a risk of the virus being reintroduced.

Punjab EOC Coordinator Khalid Parvaiz had described the absence of poliovirus in environmental samples collected from Lahore and Rawalpindi as encouraging.

However, health authorities emphasise that repeated vaccination is necessary to maintain children's immunity.

The Pakistan Polio Eradication Initiative had launched the November 2-8 drive targeting approximately 24 million children in 97 selected districts with more than 200,000 frontline workers participating.

Pakistan and Afghanistan are conducting the campaigns simultaneously to reduce the risk of cross-border transmission.

The provincial campaign's performance is also being tested in areas where population movement and access to households make vaccination more difficult.

During a visit to Rajanpur district, EOC Coordinator Khalid Parvaiz met local representatives, including Member of National Assembly Sardar Shamsher Mazari, to seek their support for improving community participation.

He visited Rojhan where he met frontline vaccination teams, examined their performance and discussed problems encountered during household visits. He directed district officials to follow approved microplans, strengthen monitoring at high-risk locations and transport points, and immediately revisit households where children had been missed.

The EOC has also arranged catch-up vaccination facilities at government hospitals for parents whose children missed the home visits. The parents have been advised to contact the helpline 1122 or visit their nearest immunisation centre.