QUETTA: At least nine children suffering from measles have been admitted to District Hospital in Zhob, a medical superintendent from the hospital told The Express Tribune.
Sources say that there could be around 30 more children suffering from the potentially fatal disease in the district.
Measles have so far killed 13 children and a total of 480 cases have been reported in Balochistan in 2014 alone. The health department has not launched a vaccination campaign due to the non-availability of funding from the government.
Doctors in Zhob believe that there could be a serious outbreak of measles if immediate steps are not taken.
The affected children were the residents of Kutabzai village, a remote area located between Zhob and Qila Saifullah districts.
The areas are remote and the cases are could be in hundreds, said a senior doctor on the condition of anonymity.
“Majority of the people could not make it to the hospital,” the doctor added.
Secretary Health Arshad Bugti said teams had been dispatched in the Zhob district to monitor the situation and take measures to prevent the disease from further outbreak.
“The health department will soon launch an immunisation campaign against measles as there has been no campaign due to the lack of funding. Balochistan government has now agreed to release the funds for the campaign,” he told The Express Tribune.
Statistics shared by the Balochistan Health Department show that merely 16% of children are fully immunised against nine diseases, which include measles and polio.
“Balochistan is half of the country in terms of landmasses and majority of the people do not have access to the basic health units,” health experts said.
Measles have killed 43 children and affected 789 others in 2013.
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