Measles Vaccination: C'River Gov't Intensifies Fight Against Vaccine-Preventable Diseases
By Ebi COLLINS
Cross River state government is taking bold steps to eliminate vaccine-preventable diseases, particularly measles, which has continued to be a leading cause of death among young children.
Flagging-off the Integrated Measles Vaccination Campaign on Friday at Primary Health Care Centre, Ikot Effanga - Calabar, the Wife of the Governor, Rev. (Mrs.) Eyoanwan Bassey Otu, said the campaign seeks to cover at least 95 percent of eligible children in the state.
Mrs. Otu, who was represented by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Gender Mainstreaming, Dr. Inyang Asibong, stressed on the need to vaccinate children within the ages of 9 to 59 months against measles, maintaining that the goal of attaining 95 percent coverage would drastically prevent outbreaks in the state.
The First Lady informed that vaccines to be administered during the exercise, billed for October 12-20, 2024, are free of charge, safe and critical to preventing health complications like brain infections, pneumonia, deafness, etc.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr. Henry Egbe Ayuk, stated that the present administration's emphasis has been on the implementation of effective prevention strategies to completely eradicate measles or reduce it to its barest minimum in the state.
Also speaking, the Director General, Cross River State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Dr. Vivien Mesembe Otu informed that the exercise would be done at fixed sites, outreach sites, etc.
"In addition to targeting children aged 9 to 59 months with the measles vaccine, the campaign will also offer HPV vaccinations to girls between the ages of 9 and 14; while routine immunizations will continue as part of ongoing efforts to protect the state’s residents of the state from vaccine-preventable diseases," she concluded.
The event received goodwill messages from donor agencies and partners, notably, World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF, NPHCDA, AFINET, Medicinès San Frontiers, and SYDANI Foundation.
