More children skip polio immunization

More children skip polio immunization

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A mother walked her three-year-old daughter to a nearby health
center for her third polio vaccination under the national
campaign on Tuesday.

The first thing that the officer asked her was whether her
child was healthy.

"If she is sick, we will not vaccinate her today. We will wait
until she gets better," said Sadheli, an officer from the Pondok
Pinang community health center.

"My daughter has a mild flu and cough. Is it OK?" said the
mother. Sadheli sent her to consult with a doctor who suggested
that they delay the vaccination.

Several hours later, the center's polio immunization
coordinator Dede Kartini received reports that several mothers
had refused to allow their ill children to be vaccinated.

There were reports of similar situations in Menteng and
Gondangdia in Central Jakarta, with fewer children coming to the
posts on Tuesday.

Numbers attending the post outside the McDonald's restaurant
in Jl. Thamrin were drastically lower. "We had 60 children in May
and 129 in June, but only 11 as of today," said local health
officer Herlina.

The Pondok Pinang health center vaccinated 5,464 children
during the first round of the polio vaccination campaign on May
31, but only 4,461 children in the second round in June.

By the late afternoon, the health center reported that the 37
posts under its supervision had vaccinated only 3,553 children.

It seemed that both health workers and mothers decided that
they would be extra careful in vaccinating children, following
controversy over the deaths of several children after the
vaccination campaign in May.

The Ministry of Health found that the children in fact died
from other diseases they had contracted before or after the
vaccination, such as dengue fever, but many in the community
believe that the deaths were related to the quality of the polio
vaccines used.

However, according to World Health Organization's (WHO)
Indonesia spokesperson, Sari P. Setiogi, oral polio vaccine could
not have any side effects as it did not enter directly into the
blood stream.

The vaccine was quite safe for children who were suffering
from fever or diarrhea.

"It is the safest vaccine compared to DPT or BCG vaccines as
it only enters through the mouth," she added.

Jakarta health agency's spokeswoman Zelvyno said that health
post officers would carry out door-to-door operations over the
next six days to vaccinate children who missed out on Tuesday.

She said that there was still resistance from certain mothers,
but only because their children were sick on vaccination day.

According to the agency, 896,898 children under five were
vaccinated during the first round of door-to-door 'mopping-up'
vaccinations on May 31, but only 690,910, or 74.75 percent, came
back for the second round held on June 28.

"Most of the posts that we visited today had vaccinated more
than 70 percent of the children in their area," she added, naming
Gunung Sahari in West Jakarta, Pela Mampang in South Jakarta and
Cipinang Muara in East Jakarta as areas that the agency surveyed
on Tuesday afternoon.

The second round will be held on Sept. 27. (003)