Toddlers given wrong vaccine

JAKARTA (JP): The anti-polio drive (PIN) in Riau got off to a blunderous start as 224 toddlers in Tangkerang Timur subdistrict were mistakenly given the wrong vaccine.

Health officials here admitted to Tuesday's mixup saying that tetanus toxoid vaccines were dropped into the toddlers' mouths instead of polio vaccines.

The tetanus vaccines were originally intended for mothers.

But health officials were quick to deny that any negative side effects would occur.

"There won't be any negative effects as a result of the incident," head of PIN's central committee, Dr. Broto Wasisto, told The Jakarta Post here yesterday.

He said the small amount of tetanus vaccine given to the toddlers would pass through the digestive system without any harm.

"There isn't any problem with the toddlers now," he said, adding that the committee had asked some pediatricians to assist with the treatment.

Separately a pediatrician at Pondok Indah Hospital when asked by the Post also said there should be no direct side effects as a result of the mistake and that the vaccine should not be dangerous to the children.

However, he expressed amazement that such a mistake occurred given that the type of bottles containing the vaccines were very different.

He pointed out that the polio vaccine's bottle included a dropper since it had to be administered orally while the tetanus vaccine did not because it was meant to be injected.

Secretary-general of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Hidayat Hardjoprawito, explained that the mistake was due to the "carelessness" of volunteers at the immunization post.

He said an investigation was currently underway.

Legislator Oelfah AS Harmanto expressed horror saying she deeply regretted the incident.

The Golkar legislator, who is deputy chairperson of House Commission VIII for social welfare, said the government along with the community should pay more attention to avoid similar mistakes.

Tuesday was the start of a national two-phase anti-polio campaign aimed at immunizing 21.9 million toddlers aged under five years old.

It is the third and final round of free polio vaccinations with the ultimate objective of making Indonesia polio-free by 2000.

Along with the polio vaccinations, women between 19 and 39 years old will be given tetanus vaccinations.

The second phase of the campaign will start Oct. 7. (09)