Rivers PHCMB Rolls Out Free Vaccines, Routine Immunizations, To Mitigate Against Diseases Outbreaks- Appeals For Mothers To Take Advantage

A medical expert, Dr. Babbo Diana has called on all parents, particularly mothers, to pay attention to the health needs of their children emphasizing that routine Immunizations are free across the 23 LGA Primary healthcare facilities  and on the need for increased public awareness of the importance of measles immunization, particularly ahead of the peak measles season, which typically begins in November and extends into late January.

Dr. Diana, who is the State Health Educator at the Rivers State Primary Health Care Board, while speaking to journalists championing health related News group, called Media Advocate For health Rivers state chapter after a public health training programme in Port Harcourt, she called on parents to also leverage on the new standard operating procedures (SOPs) manual for pharmaceutical services aimed at educating the public about polio and measures to prevent any resurgence of the polio Virus in the State, even though Nigeria has been declared polio-free.

She said despite the campaigns there are women who have not given the child/children any form of immunization pointing out that though Poliomyelitis has been declared free in the country, there is still need to continue to create awareness and educate the public on the dangers of the polio-causing Human Papilloma Virus and how to prevent the disease among our children.

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She, however, advised mothers to avoid false claims by having their infants and children vaccinated at the Health Centres, as the campaigns will allow them the opportunity to come all nooks and cranny that will allow them administered with routine nOPV2 immunization targeting 1 to 5 years and  the anti-HPV vaccine during the various phases of the State routine immunization campaigns, including the present phase of HPV targeted especially at the girl child between the ages of 9 to 14

Dr. Diana explained that nOPV2 vaccine is a variants of wild polio, highlighting that vaccine is used to treat vaccine preventable illness, as such this campaign is targeted at intensifying efforts of the primary healthcare management board awareness creation for Demand Generation toward our Integrated Measles Campaign.

Date of campaign.. 12-18 October 2024.

She said our target for Measles are children 9months to 5yrs, for Polio vaccination with nOPV2(not routinely available at facilities) against the circulating variant of polio virus is for children 0-23 months and also the utilization of the launched novel vaccination programme against the human papilloma virus for girls And we are still vaccinating girls 9-14 yrs against cervical cancer in their future years.

“Venue will be Schools, health facilities, worship centers, markets, special centers. Teams will be available going round according to their planned schedules for the LGA especially to those of them that missed out during the school period and previous campaigns”

She disclosed that the health workers are beginning to see all the illnesses that routine  immunization tackled in past are coming back, Like measles, Polio,Hepatitis whooping cough, yellow fever all coming back and causing a lot havoc in in our communities, so we are saying let mothers develop that trust again in vaccination and immunization, as this can only be achieved with the help of media amplifying their campaigns.

she encourage mothers, parents to take proactive steps in well-being of their girl child between the ages of 9 -14, urging them to take seriously the on-going Campaign Against Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) in the State.

“Measles is a highly contagious and deadly viral disease that spreads through airborne transmission and can cause serious complications such as blindness, severe diarrhea, pneumonia, and even death in unimmunized children. Vaccination remains the most effective method of preventing the spread of this disease and safeguarding the lives of children in Rivers State”

We will embark on extensive media campaigns, community outreach programs, and other public education initiatives to encourage parents to vaccinate their children, particularly in the months of September and October, to prevent outbreaks. while pleading with media outlets, community leaders, and public health volunteers to join forces in this campaign to ensure that no child is left vulnerable to this preventable disease.