Government efforts for polio eradication continues

As part of a continuing effort by the Pakistani government and UN agencies to eradicate polio from the country, the first of three immunisation rounds began on Tuesday targeting more than 26 million children under five years of age nation-wide. The ambitious supplementary vaccine programme is part of a global strategy to eradicate the crippling disease throughout the world. “We are approaching the target of eradication of polio in Pakistan,” UNICEF child health project officer Doctor Zulfiqar Ali told IRIN in Islamabad. “And Tuesday’s campaign is indicative of the government’s intensified efforts for the attainment of this goal.” Health efforts thus far in Pakistan appear positive. According to Ali, while there were over 500 cases of polio in 1999, there were only 150 in 2,000, indicating a significant drop over the previous year. Using over 30,000 health teams going door to door, the first round of the programme began on Tuesday and ends on Thursday, followed by two subsequent three day rounds on 15-17 March and 17-19 April. The teams are being assisted by health workers, doctors, public servants, para-medical staff and scouts. If children are not at home when visited, parents are instructed to bring them to a fixed immunisation centre. This in turn is followed up by the monitoring teams themselves, as these children will be visited again during the second and third rounds of the campaign, Ali said. WHO technical officer for polio eradication, Dr Jeane Welsh echoed Ali’s optimism when she told IRIN: “Significant progress is being made and we are on the right tract.” She warned, however, “We need a bit more effort and involvement so that all children from birth to five years of age receive their polio drops.” Pakistan is one of only twenty countries still battling polio, a highly infectious viral disease which mainly affects children under five years of age. The disease is still found primarily in third world countries.