Steps reviewed for drive against measles

LAHORE: Dr Munir Ahmad, Director General Health and Coordinator of Emergency Operations centre Tuesday said Punjab will launch a measles mop-up campaign in the selected union councils of Lahore, Rawalpindi, Attock, Gujranwala and Rajanpur.

He was addressing a meeting held in the DG Health office to review measles mop-up campaign arrangements. Dr Munir said the campaign had launched after increase in the incidence of measles cases in the country during the current year. “Keeping in view the situation in Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa an alert has already been issued all over the province”, he said. However, initially mop-up campaign will be launched in selected union councils of the five districts which have been identified in an analysis by the World Health Organisation. He said children under the age of five-year, who previously had not vaccinated against measles, would be inoculated during the drive. “In addition to completing deployment of staff and planning in the identified union councils, the districts have been asked to depute doctors to deal with any emergency situation during the campaign”, he said.