Lawmakers urged to strengthen immunisation

Official says progress on EPI-related indicators negligible

PESHAWAR: Health experts have sought role of the lawmakers in improving immunisation and saving human lives through routine vaccination coverage in the province and its adjoining tribal areas.

The Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) had arranged an orientation meeting with the legislators at the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial assembly building. KP Assembly Speaker Asad Qaisar chaired the workshop. Deputy Speaker Dr Meher Taj Roghani and Member National Assembly Shehryar Afridi were among some participants.

Dr Ayub Rose, EPI provincial programme manager, gave a presentation on the existing situation, issues in implementation of the programme, and role of the lawmakers in improving routine immunisation.

He said December 31, 2015 was the last day of Millennium Development Goals and they were still far behind in achieving the health indicators, especially related to mortality and morbidity among children and pregnant women.

The official said progress on the EPI-related indicators was negligible and is evident from the fact that there have been recorded deaths from vaccine preventable diseases i.e measles, diphtheria, tetanus, pneumonia/ARI, tuberculosis, meningitis, etc, and similarly resulting into thousands of morbid children. He said the EPI programme aims at increasing immunisation coverage against measles, tetanus, and Penta (pertussis, diphtheria & tetanus) to 90 per cent.

Elimination of measles and tetanus by 2020 and stopping poliovirus transmission by June 2016 have been the targets at the country level, he said, adding that all it could be possible through strengthening routine immunisation backed by introduction of Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV) into the existing list of vaccines against nine diseases among children of one year age.

Quoting Pakistan Demographic survey 2012-13, he said the number of fully immunised children in Pakistan is 54 per cent and 53 per cent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, saying low immunisation coverage leads to major contribution of mortality factors due to vaccine preventable diseases.

The EPI manager said vaccinators and EPI technicians in KP had been declared as dying cadre with no replacement by fresh skilled vaccinators rather to be filled in by two years diploma holders, multipurpose health workers e.g. health/pharmacy technicians, whose induction may not be that productive as compared to trained vaccinators.

On the issue of abandoning the use of trivalent OPV, Dr Ayub Rose said that the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) was currently facing two specific challenges.

MNA Shehryar Afridi stressed the effective role of parliamentarians in owning care for the health of the children by doing advocacy at the constituency level for saving lives due to vaccine preventable diseases through strong immunisation system backed by legislative support.

Speaker Asad Qaiser assured the department of all possible legislative support on strengthening routine immunisation through legislative forum. Dr Mehr Taj Roghani supported the idea of supporting strengthening routine immunisation with dual advantage of high immunisation coverage and polio eradication thus decreasing mortality and morbidity.