Health officials have recorded a positive turnout on the massive polio vaccination campaign in the city.
In her report to the City Council during the regular session last Tuesday, Councilor Mary Joselle Villafuerte said they accomplished at least 86% of their supposed targets in the first round alone.
Villafuerte, a physician who heads the council’s committee on health, said 160,557 children were already covered by the vaccination program from Oct. 14 – 20 based on their partial cumulative consolidated report
In her privilege speech, she said they target 186,869 kids in the city to be covered in the oral polio vaccination (OPV) program dubbed as the Sabayang Patak Kontra Polio.
The three-round campaign is in cooperation with the City Health Office, Department of Health (DOH), United Nations Children’s Fund, and World Health Organization.
Among the areas that have already achieved 100% coverage include District A (Barangays 1-A to 10-A) and District C (Barangays 21-C to 30-C) in the Poblacion District; Baguio District, Calinan District, and Toril A District.
The main City Health Office also vaccinated 250 children while the vaccination conducted in malls and churches covered 1,272 children.
Two other rounds of massive vaccination are set on Nov. 25 to Dec. 7 and Jan. 2 up to Jan. 18, 2020.
Meanwhile, major hospitals in the city also started yesterday its scheduled vaccination as satellite areas.
The vaccinations at Metro Davao Medical and Research Center (MDMRC) will run until today, at the Brokenshire Hospital until Saturday and Davao Doctors Hospital until Sunday.
The DOH and other concerned stakeholders continue to encourage parents to have their children aged 0-59 months be vaccinated with the OPV to protect themselves polio virus which reemerged since it was declared eradicated 19 years ago.
“Polio is an infectious disease that can spread rapidly and can cause paralysis,” Health Assistant Secretary Dr. Abdullah Dumama, Jr., said. “In rare conditions, it can be fatal.”
Earlier this month, Councilor Villafuerte proposed a mandatory immunization of infants and children to help the health sector meet their goal of achieving 100% immunization coverage of children below five years old in the city.
