The Expanded Vaccination Program (PVE) deployed its teams to vaccinate children aged 0 to 18 months. This was the first round of vaccination against poliomyelitis, the campaign of which took place from March 29 to 31, 2024 and whose provisional results indicate that 103% of children were vaccinated. These results were communicated by the head of the expanded vaccination program.
Vaccination is, to date, the safest way to protect children from certain diseases which can cause complications and after-effects, or even lead to death, and which are preventable thanks to vaccination.
Encouraging provisional results on the first pass
The Expanded Immunization Program implements government policy aimed at protecting younger children, through vaccination, in particular, against poliomyelitis, chickenpox, meningitis and measles. Ensuring vaccination coverage in the country, the EPI organizes permanent vaccination in integrated health centers and periodic vaccination campaigns against poliomyelitis targeting children aged 0 to 18 months.
The teams deployed from March 29 to 31 for the first round of this campaign obtained satisfactory results, according to Jonas Ebina, head of the PEV. In an exclusive interview, granted recently, the head of the PEV affirmed that unlike the results of 2022 (78%) and 2023 (73%), the provisional results of this year 2024 are very encouraging, he revealed, before the 2nd visit scheduled for May.
Free vaccination according to an established schedule
According to the head of government, polio vaccination campaigns are organized in the country to respond to a declared environmental case, before specifying that clinical cases are less and less present on the national territory. The government has made the vaccine available free of charge to the population, in order to save the lives of young children and women of childbearing age.
The vaccination campaigns complement routine vaccination which is carried out in all health districts of Congo, added the head of the EPI who added that routine vaccination consists of vaccinating children from birth up to 18 months. , against tuberculosis, tetanus, pneumococcal pneumonia, measles and diarrhea and many others. Vaccine doses are administered to children according to a schedule established by the EPI services which regularly monitor vaccinated children for possible post-vaccination adverse events (AEFI) and for the remainder of their immunization process, said Mr. Ebina.
Unlike vaccination at the national level, synchronized vaccination concerns border countries in the event of a declared epidemic. It is done on the same date in all the countries concerned.
Cultural and religious obstacles
In implementing its work plan, the program faces some difficulties, particularly in patient monitoring. Indeed, for cultural and religious reasons, some parents do not follow their children’s vaccination schedule as required. Other parents cut short children’s vaccinations because they moved from one neighborhood to another. However, Mr. Ebina qualifies, each time these children are found, they are given catch-up doses.
Thanks to the establishment of the “Mangouélé” program, recognized the head of the PEV, its structure benefits from the support of Unicef. Thus, messages are sent to each parent to remind them of the day of their child’s vaccination.
Author: Wilfrid Lawilla D.
