LAHORE
Health experts have called for increase in the scope and reach of Expanded Programme of Immunisation (EPI) as 27 percent of deaths in Pakistan of children under five years of age are due to vaccine preventable diseases.
A press briefing was arranged by a Pakistan Paediatric Association (PPA) in the backdrop of World Immunisation Week at a local hotel on Wednesday to highlight the importance of vaccination and immunisation.
Dr Tahir Masood, PPA president, said that immunisation was a proven tool for controlling and eliminating life-threatening infectious diseases and it was one of the most cost-effective health investments.
He said vaccines protect children by preparing their bodies to fight many potentially deadly diseases. He said they were responsible to control many infectious diseases that were once common around the world, including smallpox, polio, measles, diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), rubella (German measles), mumps, tetanus and haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib).
H said vaccines were considered second only to clean drinking water in controlling infectious diseases. "Immunisation is one of the most successful and cost-effective health interventions and prevents between two and three million deaths every year," Tahir added.
To a question why there is a need for vaccination, Dr Naeem zafar, PPA vice-president, said that every year, globally, neumonia killed an estimated 1.2 million children under the age of five years, more than the number of deaths caused by AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined. Rotavirus gastroenteritis is estimated to cause more than half a million child deaths. Two billion people are infected with Hepatitis B virus and about 780,000 people die, all of these can be prevented through vaccination and immunisation, Naeem said.
Globally 17 percent of deaths of under five years of age group are due to vaccine preventable diseases. "Without vaccines, epidemics of many preventable diseases could return," he added.
Talking about how vaccination changes lives, Dr Asif Kaleem Sheikh, PPA Punjab president, said measles vaccination resulted in a 75 percent drop in measles deaths between 2000 and 2013 worldwide, while illnesses and complications caused by influenza could be reduced by up to 60 percent, and deaths by 80 percent, in elderly patients.
Polio cases were reduced by 99 pc from over 300,000 per year in 1988 to fewer than 650 cases in 2011. Smallpox was eradicated globally in a time span of 10 years, said Dr Asif.
Dr Haroon Hamid, PPA Punjab general secretary, said, "We have to educate parents about the importance of vaccination and persuade them to bring their children to nearest EPI centres. Despite the availability of free vaccines, coverage is very low. Lack of awareness and socio-cultural barriers are the biggest reason for it, he said, adding that the media was the only force which could create mass level awareness and help protect children from deadly diseases.
Polio Vaccine: Punjab is all set to complete implementation of global switch from Trivalent Oral Polio Vaccine (TOPV) to Bivalent Oral Polio Vaccine (BOPV) from April 25.
According to a handout issued here, EPI Director Dr Munir Ahmed chaired a meeting of EPI experts and technical officials from UNICEF, WHO and Gates Foundation on Wednesday to review the progress made in developing the monitoring mechanism after the switch deadline.
The TOPV to BOPV switch implies that BOPV will replace TOPV in all types of vaccination activities like routine immuniwation and polio campaigns throughout the world, including Pakistan.The TOPV to BOPV switch will occur on April 25 and the objective is to remove the P2 virus from the world, even from the vaccine.
EPI Director Dr Munir Ahmed said, “The TOPV vaccine includes all three types of polio virus. As no polio case due to type two of polio virus have been reported since 1999, the experts believe there is no need to give vaccine against type two.Removing type two component from OPV will improve the potency of BOPV against type one and type three which will help achieve polio-free country and world.”
Dr Munir said that BOPV would be used in polio campaign from April 25 in 15 districts, and monitoring teams from the provincial office would inspect the district and tehsil stores to ensure no vial of TOPV was present anywhere in the province. He said by April 23, 2016, all TOPV vials must be counted, removed from cold chain i.e. ILRs, refrigerators, etc and placed in separate bag or container and transported to DO (H) Office from all EPI centres, PTP etc. TOPV will be exchanged for BOPV at DO (H) Office and no single dose or vial of TOPV must be left at vaccination site. The Independent monitors will visit EPI sites, THQ and DHQs to validate that all TOPV is removed and shifted to DO (H) office for onward transportation to provincial office.