POLIO IMMUNIZATION EYED AMID PANDEMIC

A total of 186,864 children in Davao City under five years old are being targeted for the Sabayang Patak Kontra Polio on July 20 to August 2

THE Department of Health (DOH) is determined to push for the polio immunization amid the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.

Now on its fifth round, the Sabayang Patak Kontra Polio is set on July 20 to August 2 from its previous schedule of March 23 but was suspended due to the declaration of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Davao City Health Office chief of technical division Julinda Acosta said for this round, they target to immunize about 186,864 children under five years old in Davao City.

“Sa Davao City, nakita nga naay live [polio] virus diri sa Davao City although we do not have a case yet but considering the number of cases nga nag surround sa city, tama lang gyud nga ipadayon nato para madugangan nato og proteksyon ang mga kabataan,” she said.

With Covid-19, the health officials have laid out strategies to prevent the spread of Sars-Cov-2 as they implement the immunization.

DOH in Davao Region regional director Annabelle Yumang said vaccination will still be done either house-to-house or the parents will bring their children to their nearest health centers while observing the minimum health standards.

For house-to-house, she said the health workers will be wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) including face shields and face masks, and will be given alcohol for disinfecting.

She also advised parents and guardians to observe health protocols.

“Tumanon gyud to dili lang sa health workers kundili apil sad ang atong mga ginikanan ug ang mga nagbantay sa mga bata. Ang mga magulang lang ang pwedeng humawak ng bibig mga bata (Both the parents and health workers must follow the health protocols. We advise that only the parents will be allowed to touch the mouth of the child during vaccination),” she said. /For full story visit sunstar. com.ph/davao