DOH eyes vaccination of over 107K kids in NCR

The Department of Health- Metro Manila Center for Health Development (DOH-MMCHD) on Tuesday launched its catch-up immunization campaign in a bid to vaccinate 107,995 children in the capital against vaccine-preventable diseases.

The initiative is targeting children aged 0-23 months in the National Capital Region who have missed doses of BCG vaccine, Hepatitis B, bivalent oral polio vaccine (bOPV), pentavalent vaccine, pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV), inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV), and measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine.

Pregnant women, meanwhile, will be vaccinated for tetanus-diphtheria (TD), and adults 60 years old and above will receive other necessary immunizations.

Melissa Talavera, a mother of a 1-year-old child who is set to receive her pentavalent vaccine, underscored the importance of vaccines for young children who are vulnerable to many diseases.

“Bale lima ang anak ko, lahat sila kumpleto [ang bakuna]. Hindi sila sakitin kapag kumpleto. So sa kanya po talaga, gino-goal ko na makatapos ng bakuna hanggang sa last bakuna niya,” Talavera said.

(I have five children and they all have completed their vaccines. They don’t become sickly. For my 1-year-old child, I'm making it a goal to have her finish her immunization.)

She also encouraged her fellow parents to help protect their babies through the vaccines that are safe, effective, and free.

“Hindi naman maiiwasan na kabahan o magduda about sa bakuna pero bilang parent po kasi, hindi naman i-implement ‘to ng DOH kung hindi makakabuti sa mga bata. Kung mas aware ka, mas maiiwasan magkasakit ang mga bata,” Talavera said.

(Being nervous or having doubts about the vaccine can’t be avoided, but as a parent, I believe that the DOH will not implement this program if it is not good for the children. The more aware you are, the more children can avoid getting sick.)

Gypsy Cabaitan, a father of a 1-year-old, attested that his child was able to fight severe symptoms because of the vaccines.

“Kapag nagkasakit si baby, ang gastos… Last time, we almost [spent] like P5,000. Lagnat lang ‘yun tsaka ubo at sipon. What more pa kaya kapag hindi siya nakapag-vaccine,” Cabaitan said.

(It’s costly when the baby gets sick... Last time, we spent almost P5,000 just for fever, cough, and cold. What more if he hasn't been vaccinated?)

“Sabi nila, the reason why the baby is taking the vaccine is para hindi gaanong severe ‘yung makukuhang sakit ni baby which is good thing kasi nakapag-vaccine siya so parang ang nangyari is two to three days lang siya nagkasakit and after that, magaling na siya,” he added.

(They said that the reason why the baby is taking the vaccine is so he did not become severely ill. Good thing my baby had been vaccinated and because of that, he only got sick for two to three days and after that, he already became well.)

The launch of the big catch-up immunization campaign was held at the Caloocan Sports Complex in Caloocan City and was attended by over 250 children, pregnant women, and elderly.

The program, which will run until December 16, aims to increase the fully immunized child coverage in Metro Manila to 95% and to reduce the number of the zero-dose children in the region.

Earlier this month, the DOH-MMCHD admitted that its accomplishments for the school-based nationwide vaccination program were still below their target.

The “Bakuna-Eskwela” seeks to vaccinate school-age children in all public schools nationwide against vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles, rubella, diphtheria, tetanus, and cervical cancer.

As of November 17, there were 36,424 Grade 1 students in Metro Manila that received the measles-rubella (MR) vaccine, while 37,463 received the tetanus-diphtheria (TD) vaccine.

For Grade 7 students, 24,017 got the MR vaccine and 24,003 received the TD vaccine. There were 18,635 Grade 4 female students who also got the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. — BAP, GMA Integrated News