Govt says polio cases found in Aceh and Riau<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The government has reported the discovery of polio cases in Riau
\nand tsunami-ravaged Aceh as it prepares to embark on a third
\nvaccination drive next month to fight the virus that has
\ninfected 269 children since it resurfaced in March after a
\ndecade-long absence.<\/p>\n
Minister of Health Siti Fadilah Supari said on Tuesday that a
\n3-year-old Acehnese boy had been found to be suffering from the
\ndisease, the first polio case since the recent outbreak to be
\ndiscovered in Aceh, which is still struggling to recover from the
\ndevastating impact of the Dec. 26 tsunami.<\/p>\n
\"He had not received all his vaccinations,\" she told a press
\nconference, adding that health services in Aceh had yet to return
\nto normal since the disaster.<\/p>\n
Although the boy lives in a village in East Aceh District,
\nwhich was not affected by the disaster zone, health officials
\nvoiced concern over a possible resurgence of polio in Aceh as
\ntens of thousands of people were still living in refugee camps.<\/p>\n
Another case had also been found in Riau, an oil-rich province
\nalso located on Sumatra Island, Siti said, but did not provide
\ndetails.<\/p>\n
Siti said that it was hoped that the third round of the
\nvaccination drive would reach more children as Indonesia had set
\na polio-free target date of 2008.<\/p>\n
The ministry's director general of disease control, I Nyoman
\nKandun, said that the government had yet to decide whether the
\nthird round of the drive would cover under-fives nationwide or in
\ncertain high-risk areas only.<\/p>\n
\"We will make a detailed plan soon,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Indonesia has staged two rounds of the polio vaccination drive
\nso far -- the first in August and the second in September.<\/p>\n
Siti said that the next round of the drive would likely be
\nheld on Nov. 27. The cost of the drive is estimated at US$12
\nmillion, more than 60 percent of which will be covered by foreign
\nassistance.<\/p>\n
Around 97 percent of the 23.4 million children targeted in the
\nsecond round of the drive in September had been vaccinated, the
\nminister said.<\/p>\n
In the first round of the campaign, the government reached
\napproximately 22.2 million children, or 95 percent of those
\ntargeted.<\/p>\n
The government will pay special attention this time around to
\na number of provinces, such as North Maluku, Papua and West Irian
\nJaya as the first two rounds had managed to reach less than 90
\npercent of the targeted children in these areas, Siti said.<\/p>\n
A third-round vaccination drive has been recommended by the
\nWorld Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children
\nFund (UNICEF).<\/p>\n
\"We are by no means at the end of this outbreak. While we have
\ndone a good job ... there's still more work to be done,\" said
\nDavid Hipgrave, a UNICEF health official in Indonesia, as quoted
\nby AFP.<\/p>\n
The water-borne virus spread to 35 regencies in 10 of the
\ncountry's total of 32 provinces at a speed that has raised
\ninternational concern that the disease could spread to
\nneighboring countries unless the necessary measures are taken.<\/p>\n
The latest outbreak is said to be genetically linked to the
\nvirus circulating in Sudan, Saudi Arabia and Yemen. The
\nauthorities believe that it was brought to Indonesia by migrant
\nworkers, pilgrims or travelers.<\/p>\n
The virus attacks and withers children's limbs and can be
\ndeadly. The WHO says 19 countries have been reinfected with polio
\nin the last two years.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/govt-says-polio-cases-found-in-aceh-and-riau-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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