3 million children eyed in polio war

MORE than 3.2 million children are being targeted in the nationwide polio vaccination campaign this month, according to the Health Department.
Minister for Health and HIV/AIDS Sir Puka Temu said the campaign was the biggest in Papua New Guinea.
It will involve 9000 health workers being mobilised to vaccinate all children under the age of 15 years.
“This is a massive operation that would need the cooperation of every member of our society – every father, mother, teacher, health worker and everyone else,” Sir Puka said.
“This is the moment for us to demonstrate that we can protect our children better when we work together.”
Papua New Guinea confirmed a polio outbreak on June 22 after it was found that the polio virus was back in the country after 18 years.
A public health emergency was declared on June 26 and a comprehensive response plan was developed.
Since July, two rounds of polio vaccinations have been conducted for children under the age of five in Morobe, Madang and Eastern Highlands; and one round in Enga, Chimbu, Southern Highlands, Western Highlands, Jiwaka and Hela.
Since the start of the polio outbreak, World Health Organisation has assisted the government with the deployment of more than 70 international specialists, established health emergency operation centres to serve as operational hubs for the management of day-to-day response operations.
WHO country representative Luo Dapeng said that in the next two weeks the campaign will vaccinate thousands of children and involve be health centres, villages, communities, markets, bus stops, schools and places of worship.
Up to Thursday, a total of 14 cases of polio – five in Eastern Highlands, three in Morobe, two in Enga, two in Madang, one in the National Capital District and one in Jiwaka – had been confirmed.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) has procured more than 5.7 million doses of oral polio vaccines as well as provided technical support to repair faulty vaccine refrigerators in the provinces and instal new refrigerators for the vaccines.