Two health programmes to synergise for strengthening immunisation

Islamabad : Having achieved considerable gains in the fight against polio, the teams of the Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) and the Polio Eradication Initiative (PEI) have planned to synergise for strengthening routine immunisation in Pakistan.

In this context, a synergy consultative workshop was held to develop common understanding and to identify areas of cooperation between the two programmes in four domains namely, integrated reporting, service delivery, monitoring, and communication. The workshop helped address existing gaps and the challenges that both programmes are facing in way of joint implementation of activities.

One of the main activities of the workshop was to develop and finalise an action plan outlining the roles and responsibilities of both programmes with agreed timelines for implementation.

“I appreciate the leadership of EPI and PEI for conducting this joint exercise and agreeing on the main course of action for joint set of activities to enhance immunisation in Pakistan. Such collaborative efforts will help us to reach out to every child and leave no one behind in our mission to immunise Pakistan. I hope today’s exercise will give us a major breakthrough in achieving desired results,” said Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Health Dr. Faisal Sultan.

Chaired jointly by the National EPI Manager and the NEOC Coordinator, the event featured presentations identifying areas where cooperation can be extended and immediate results obtained to not only create demand for routine immunization but also sustain the gains made by the polio programme. Furthermore, feedback from the participants helped the PEI and EPI leaderships to better understand the ground realities and existing opportunities for cooperation.

“Our collaboration will help achieve the overall goal of SDG3 and Universal Health Coverage with regard to immunisation. Such synergy efforts will enable us to reach every child in hard to reach settings in the country and to better meet our immunization objectives,” said, Dr. Muhammad Akram Shah, National Programme Manager.

“We can see positive developments from both programmes to strengthen immunisation in Pakistan by jotting down the joint action plan in four key areas. We hope this collaboration will help us achieve our objective, said Dr. Shehzad Baig, NEOC Coordinator.