Nationwide drive: Around 400,000 children miss polio vaccination: report

Some 34.7m children inoculated against a target of 35.5m

ISLAMABAD:

Some 400,000 children missed the vaccination initiative mounted as part of this year’s first nationwide anti-polio drive, according to documents available with The Express Tribune.

Around 58,631 parents refused to get their children inoculated against the crippling disease. During the initiative a total of 34.7 million children were reportedly vaccinated against the set target of 35.5 million.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) recorded the highest number of parental refusal cases with 36,985 followed by Sindh 14,646, Balochistan 5,176, Punjab 962, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) 515, Islamabad 275, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) 36.  There were no refusals in Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) .

Overall coverage of the anti-polio drive remained up to the mark in all provinces except Balochistan (74%) and Fata (55%). Punjab remained on top with 104%, Islamabad stood second with 103% followed by AJK and G-B with 102%, Sindh 97% and K-P 95%.

Dr Rana Safdar, in-charge of the National Emergency Operation Cell (NEOC), has called the drive a success so far with above 90% coverage in most of the provinces.

“This kind of coverage is the need of the hour for Pakistan,” he said, adding that this report should not be considered as final because in Karachi the anti-polio drive is in progress and Fata has yet to submit its complete result.

In an effort to strengthen coordination between the centre and provinces, 20 federal field monitors were sent in various districts across the country to informed the NEOC about any issues to be resolved immediately, Safdar said.

He added that then Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV) was also introduced at various places during the campaign which helped improve results.

About the missing children, he noted, catch-up activities are in progress to vaccinate all of them and to convince parents to get their children vaccinated against the crippling disease.

State Minister for National Health Services, Regulation and Coordination Saira Afzal Tarar said improvement has been witnessed in the anti-polio drive in the county.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 28^th, 2015.