Alarm as children miss vaccines

A prolonged health workers strike last year in their immunization coverage, exposing children under one year to polio, pneumonia and tuberculosis.

The Ministry of Health shows that the gains made in immunization have been greatly increased in recent years.

The ministry said that by last year, out of 864,619 recorded births countrywide, only 65 per cent of the children underwent full immunization, with 76 per cent recorded for a vaccine primarily used against tuberculosis, BCG (Bacillus Calmette-Guerin).

According to the 2018 Economic Survey, the coverage dropped from 1,101,279 (69 per cent) immunized children in 2016 to 1,014,894 (63 per cent) in 2017.

The 2017 figure is the lowest coverage since 2005.

According to the Nyandarua Director of Health Services, Kariuki G ichuki, the number of unimmunized children in the county and the country as a whole

"This predisposes the county and country to the outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases. It is easier and cheaper to immunize children than to treat them of diseases, "Dr. Kariuki said.

He gave the example of measles treatment, saying the budget was enough to vaccinate about 100 children.

According to the data, the worst immunization was recorded last year, when the nurses' strike began recording at 46 per cent coverage. This forced to the Ministry of Health Services after the Four-Month Strike

Healthcare services in all the public facilities ground to a halt last year when nurses went on strike between June and November for 152 days. The industrial action on the heels of the doctors' strike, which began on December 5, 2016, and ended on March 14, 2017.

Therefore, nearly 500,000 children were not vaccinated against some of the world's most debilitating diseases. polio, pneumonia, meningitis, measles, influenza and hepatitis

In an overall badysis, 21 counties registered in the immunization coverage

Data from the Division of Vaccines and Immunization and The District Health Information System indicates that by last year, a majority of counties did not meet their target coverage of the Penta 1 and Penta 3 (Pentavalent) immunizations, which are given to children to protect against multiple diseases. 19659004] Pentavalent is a mandatory vaccine introduced in 2002 for all children. Diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, hepatitis B and haemophilus influenzae type b. Mandera County trailed at 30 and 35 percent coverage in Penta 1 and Penta 3 coverage, respectively. Kiambu led in Penta-3 at 100 per cent.

Other routine vaccines introduced afterwards include PCV 10 in 2011, measles second dose in 2013, Rota Virus in 2014, Immunized Polio Vaccine in 2015, while in 2016, the ministry switched from In Nyandarua County, the measles immunization coverage reduced from 15, 429 in 2014 to 12, 248 in 2017.

According to Dr. Kariuki, the statistics are a measles-rubella wakeup call to all to vigorously create awareness and reach to immunizable children.

"The body has its own immune system; The importance of routine immunization is that it helps the body to produce antibodies, "he said.

To mitigate the challenge in the county, the Department of Health is using mobile phone alerts sent to mothers A day before the immunization date.

"What we are doing to document the mothers of mobile phones numbers at the time of delivery," said Dr. Kariuki.

Ms Jane Njeri, community health educator, says some of the immunizable diseases have no cure while others cause permanent disabilities, or

"Some of the preventable diseases such as tuberculosis are expensive and time consuming to treat. Diarrhea is also a big challenge for our children, yet it is also immune, "said the health educator. Mother-Child booklet, which contains information on pregnancy, postpartum, race, immunization, nutrition, and other data to the child