Health dept asked to improve routine immunisation

LAHORE:Chief Secretary Zahid Akhtar Zaman has directed the Health Department to improve routine immunisation across the province for the complete eradication of polio.

He issued this directive while presiding over a meeting at the Civil Secretariat here Monday. The meeting reviewed health reforms and measures to control polio, dengue, and conjunctivitis. It was decided that a special campaign to improve routine immunisation would be launched in eight districts - Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, DG Khan, Bahawalnagar, Bahawalpur, Jhang, Gujrat and Pakpattan.

Chief Secretary ordered that the ongoing national anti-polio campaign in the province be made a success and 100 percent coverage of missed children be ensured. He said that continuous efforts were needed to eradicate polio and dengue. He said that concrete measures were being taken for the improvement of the health and education sector, adding that the implementation of the health insurance programme in government hospitals was yielding positive results.

Secretary Health Ali Jan gave a detailed briefing at the meeting. He said that in the anti-polio campaign of October, the health authorities have set a target of vaccinating more than 22 million children in all districts of Punjab. He said that the rate of routine immunisation in Lahore was increased by 15.3 percent under a special campaign. He mentioned that all necessary arrangements were made in the hospitals for dealing with the patients of conjunctives whose number is seeing a downward trend. He said that Lahore and Rawalpindi were on high alert regarding dengue. The top officials of the Health department attended the meeting while all divisional commissioners and deputy commissioners participated through a video link.

Elected

Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (PPMA) has unanimously elected Mian Khalid Misbah-ur-Rehman as Central Chairman at the Annual General Meeting of PPMA.

Chaudhry Israr Sharif and Dr Mahwish Khan took oath as Senior Vice-Chairman and Vice-Chairman respectively. Dr Shafique-ur-Rehman was elected as the Zonal Chairman for North Zone (Punjab & KP). Ch Muhammad Hanif (Chief Election Commissioner) administered the oath of office to newly-elected executive committee members and office-bearers.