EOC COMMUNICATION UPDATE Issue no. 117

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EOC Communication update

117th Edition

WWW.ENDPOLIO.COM.PK ISSUE NO. 117 – MAY 20, 2017

Murad Ali Shah vows to make polio-free The Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has said that he was committed to eradicate polio from Sindh but this is a national issue and all the provincial governments have to combat it in their respective areas, otherwise this threat would always be looming large. He said while presiding over a meeting on the `Provincial Task Force Meeting for Polio Eradication' here at the CM House. Health Minister Dr Sikandar Mendhro, Aseefa Bhutto Zaradri, MNA Azra Pechuho, Chief Secretary Rizwan Memon, Mayor of Waseem Akhtar, IG Police AD Khowaja, Coordinator Emergency Operation Center for Polio Fayaz Jatoi and the representatives of the federal government, UNICEF, WHO, provincial secretaries were also present on the occasion. The chief minister said that he was giving extraordinary attention to the ongoing polio drive by ensuring security arrangements for the teams. "Therefore, I want to make Sindh free of polio." He was quite satisfied when he received the report that during the current five months of 2017 no polio case has been reported anywhere from Sindh. "I hope this year would prove to be zero polio year". Briefing the meeting, Coordinator Emergency Operation Center for Polio Fayaz Jatio said that during the first five months of 2017 only two polio cases have been reported in the country, one in Gilgit -Baltistan and other one in Punjab. He added that during 2014, some 30 polio cases had emerged in Sindh. The figure dropped down to 12 in 2015 and it went further down to eight in 2016 and "thanks to God it is zero this year". On this Aseefa Bhutto urged the polio team to maintain zero figure and work hard to eradicate its virus also. He said that Karachi was vulnerable and samples collected from different areas such as Machhar Colony, Sohrab Goth, Gadap etc had polio virus. But now Karachi is negative while there are some indications of the virus in the areas of Lower and Northern Sindh. He added that necessary measures have been taken to control the situation. Mr Jatoi told the meeting that in Karachi the polio coverage is around 90 percent but still 80,000 children are left because of two reasons refusal or absence in their houses. On this the chief minister directed them to convince the parents who refuse to give polio drops to their children and try to reach out to their home who are not present there at the time of drive or rounds. He directed Minister Health Dr Sikanadar Mendhro to post District Health Officers (DHO) where these positions are vacant. "Don't allow these positions on additional charge for long because we have given ownership to the polio drive, therefore there must be proper working at every rank," he said. EOC COMMUNICATION UPDATE | ISSUE NO. 117 2

Health minister visits slums to monitor ongoing campaign

In a surprise move, the Minister for National Health Services Saira Afzal Tarar visited vaccinators working in slums located on the outskirts of Islamabad to personally monitor the immunisation campaign on the second day of the three-day nationwide drive. Tarar was accompanied by the Prime Minister’s Focal Person for Polio Eradication Senator Ayesha Raza Farooq and senior officers of the health ministry. The health minister went inside the homes in Mehrabadi and asked mothers if their children had been vaccinated by vaccinators. Families were also urged to vaccinate their children against diseases explaining that vaccination was being provided by the government for free for every child against nine diseases and that it was the responsibility of the parents to avail these services for the health and wellbeing of their children. She also inspected the children playing in the streets to see whether their fingers had been marked after they were vaccinated. Tarar also spoke with polio teams and checked their tally sheets. She also advised polio teams to pay attention to children who may be visiting relatives since there is a possibility that such children are missed in the drive. Apart from the polio drops, the health minister directed vaccinators to administer the injectable polio vaccine (IPV) as well to children to enhance their immunity against polio. She further directed that each house, including makeshift shanties, should be properly marked with permanent markers to ensure each household is covered. Tarar said that areas in the capital such as Mehra Jaffar, Bhara Kahu, Rawat, Koral-urban north, Koral- urban south, Sector E-11 and Sector F-11 were areas of concern and require the greater attention of the Islamabad administration and health officials in order to avert the risk of polio in these areas. Noting that the polio drive in the capital was critical, she said would be personally monitoring the campaign in the city. She also took notice of gaps in the provision of routine immunisation services against nine deadly diseases of children in the area and issued directions to ensure that every child is immunised without fail. EOC COMMUNICATION UPDATE | ISSUE NO. 117 3

Profile Story of a Sehat Muhafiz from Sindh My name is Shahida and I am a Sehat Muhafiz in Mirpurkhas, Sindh province. It is difficult work to vaccinate children in the scorching heat, especially as villages are scattered and it takes time to get from one place to another. However, I love my job and I am willing to go any length to vaccinate the children of my community. It not only feels good to safeguard the future of our children but it also makes me feel special as people look up to me and come to me with their children’s health problems and I can offer solutions. It is a great feeling. I hope can be polio free soon so I can contribute towards limiting the spread of other diseases. Polio case update:

PROVINCE 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

PUNJAB 7 9 2 7 5 2 0 1

SINDH 27 33 4 10 30 12 8 0

KPK 24 23 27 11 68 17 8 0

FATA 74 59 20 65 179 16 2 0

BALOCHISTAN 12 73 4 0 25 7 2 0

GILGIT-BALTISTAN 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1

AZAD JAMMU & KASHMIR 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

TOTAL 144 198 58 93 306 54 20 2

* Last reported case from Diamir, Gilgit Baltistan on March 10, 2017.

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