Minister opens immunisation week with pledge to achieve 100pc coverage

LAHORE:Punjab Minister for Health and Population Department Khawaja Imran Nazir formally inaugurated the world immunisation week in a seminar at a local hotel pledging access to free vaccination for every child of the province.

Speaking at the Seminar, the Minister said, “Everyone deserves a chance to live a healthy, fulfilling life – no matter who they are or where they live. Yet we know that not everyone has the same access to life-saving vaccines. From Cholistan to Attock, we are introducing historical initiatives to reach out to all children. The hiring of 20,000 Community Health Inspectors has begun, under the Big Catch Up we vaccinated all missed children till five years. In just over one year, Punjab has opened 400 new EPI centers under Public Private Partnership. Legislation on immunization is being finalized and new vaccine to curb cervical cancer will be introduced in September.”

The minister said even though Punjab leads all provinces in terms of coverage, yet big challenges remain. He said if every mother gets committed to safeguarding her children, Punjab can achieve even 100 pc coverage, reducing threats of outbreaks to negligible levels.

The World Immunization Week, celebrated every year globally from April 24 to 30, aims to promote the life-saving power of immunisation to protect people of all ages against vaccine-preventable diseases.

The seminar was attended by Vice Chancellor Fatima Jinnah Medical University Professor Khalid Masood Gondal, Dean IPH Professor Sara Afzal, Director Expanded Program on Immunization Dr. Samra Khurram, Director IRMNCH Dr. Khalil Ahmed Sakhani, Head of Office WHO Punjab Dr. Jamshaid Ahmed, UNICEF Immunisation Officer Dr Khurram Mubeen, representatives of BMGF, JHPIEGO, Pakistan Medical Association, Pakistan Pediatrics Association and Pakistan Academy of Family Physicians. The seminar was organized with UNICEF support.

Dr EPI Dr Samra Khurram said that this year’s theme “Immunization for All is Humanly Possible” emphasises that every new child born deserves the benefit of vaccines. She said Punjab envisages vaccination of 4.2 million children annually through fixed EPI Centers, Outreach and Mobile teams.

Vaccines are available free of cost at all health facilities of Punjab as well as outreach and mobile teams. She said access and equity are key priority areas of the program currently. Head of Office WHO Punjab Dr Jamshaid Ahmed said that over the last 51 years, essential vaccines have saved at least 154 million lives globally. That is 6 lives a minute, every day, for five decades. In this journey, vaccination accounts for 40% of the improvement in infant survival, and more children now live to see their first birthday and beyond than at any other time in human history.