Uniting to fight polio in Morobe

The National National

By EREBIRI ZURENUOC
WITH just a week before the first round of polio vaccination scheduled for next Monday, partnerships and commitments in Morobe have been strengthened.
There will be four sub-national vaccination rounds on polio response until October.
Health facilities, the private sector, churches and even public servants will support and resources to implement the “polio response plan”.
According to World Health Organisation (WHO), the main objectives of the plan are to:

  • Interrupt circulation of the polio virus;
  • enhance surveillance in selected high-risk provinces; and,
  • Attempt initiation of environmental surveillance of the polio virus. The plan aims to achieve coverage of more than 95 per cent of children under five years of age in every district of targeted provinces.

Lutheran Health Services regional secretary Gesa Diningup said staff at four health centres in Morobe would provide support.
“We are committed to help the Morobe health division in the immunisation programme,” he said.
“I assure the provincial health and WHO that our officers will participate in the response plan and help in any way possible.”
Diningup said support in terms of resources was needed and was the reason why immunisation had not been carried out.
“For so long, 20 per cent of health services are provided by church-run health facilities,” he said.
“Four of our health centres in the province have not been doing immunisations for the last four or five years. The reason is that vaccines and resources are not available.
“How does the Government expect us to carry out immunisation when we are not given the vaccines and resources?”
Meanwhile, Morobe’s education adviser Keith Jiram said teachers and students would help disseminate information.
“It is important that we provide information on the relevance of polio immunisation to the rural majority before the immunisation programme starts,” he said.
A polio outbreak response plan and response management system for Morobe will be finalised by Friday.