Senior citizens get protection from pneumonia
AS PART of the Department of Health’s (DOH) Expanded Program on Immunization, a total of 3,500 senior citizens were recently given free vaccination against pneumonia in Calasiao, Pangasinan and Bago City, Negros Occidental, two model LGUs that demonstrated strong local government support in implementing the government’s immunization program.
To prevent the spread of pneumonia infection among the elderly, pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV) was given to adults aged 60 years and above who are prone to age-related impairment of the immune system.
Ronia Aragon, a medical specialist and development management officer V of DOH Region I, said that the government advocates protection against pneumonia because it can lead to serious illness. Pneumonia remains one of the top five leading causes of deaths in the Philippines, according to the DOH. “Dapat protektado tayo, at ang pinakamabisang panlaban sa pneumonia ay ang pagbabakuna. So dapat, tayong lahat na senior citizen ay magpa-bakuna na (We should get protection and the most effective way to combat pneumonia is vaccination. All senior citizens should get immunized),” Ms. Aragon said in her lecture during the event held at Calasiao Sports Complex in Pangasinan.
John Lee Gacusan, senior head program officer of the DOH Region I, noted that vaccination among the elderly is provided in Section 4 of Republic Act No. 9994 or the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010.
Calasiao Mayor Armand Bauzon, for his part, thanked the DOH for supporting the health programs of the municipal government, particularly for the senior citizens. “We have already tripled the budget of the Municipal Health Office. Every year, we increase it because we believe we should give attention to people’s health, including the senior citizens,” he added.
Nona Obando, head nurse of the City Health Office of Bago City, said that in the past years, pneumonia persisted as one of the top causes of deaths among elderly and children in the city. “When the free vaccines from the DOH arrived, cases of pneumonia have dropped in Bago City,” she said.
Ms. Obando noted that at first, the elderly in Bago feared immunization because they believed that getting an “injection” will cause pain, but after they were informed of its benefits, many responded positively.
“In the end, they availed of the free immunization. They started going to our health center to get vaccinated,” she said, adding that so far, there were no negative reactions observed among those given the anti-pneumonia vaccines. City officials of Bago showed support for the DOH’s Expanded Program on Immunization by holding their own vaccination activity at the Manuel Y. Torres Memorial Coliseum and Cultural Center.