Pakistan’s female vaccinating team moves from polio to measles

‘These people really understand the population’

THE network of female vaccinating teams credited with bringing polio to the brink of extinction in Pakistan will next month be brought to bear on measles in the country’s first nationwide blitz against the virus in five years.

Health officials believe the community teams credited with turning around Pakistan’s campaign against polio can have a similar effect on other health problems.

Since Pakistan built a network of dedicated operations centres and health workers, polio cases have fallen from 306 in 2014 to just four so far in 2018.

One of the most successful parts of the anti-polio campaign has been the recruitment of tens of thousands of largely female community-based volunteers who vaccinate children in their own neighbourhoods. The tactic was instrumental in overcoming distrust of vaccination.

Dr Rana Safdar, coordinator of the national Emergency Operation Centre for polio eradication, said: “These people really understand the population they are surveying. We are at a stage where we can make use of this intervention for broader service delivery on a number of accounts.”

A nationwide 12-day measles campaign takes place next month. Measles cases more than doubled last year.