The World Health Organisation has formally certified India and ten other South Asian nations polio-free, excluding Pakistan and Afghanistan - two of the world's three countries where polio is endemic. A separate damning verdict for the country on this account came the same day from the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) of the Global Polio Initiative, describing the situation as a "powder keg" which could ignite widespread polio transmission. "If the current trend continues", said the IMB Chairperson in a letter to WHO Director-General, "Pakistan will be the last place on earth in which polio exists." Unfortunately, so far efforts to reverse the trend have not met with much success. The National Institute of Health in Islamabad confirmed on Thursday reports of three new polio cases in North Waziristan, the area most affected by the Taliban's ban on immunisation of children against the crippling disease.
The biggest setback to the immunisation campaigns, of course, has been caused by the Taliban who have been offering violent resistance not only in the tribal areas but also in parts of Karachi and Quetta. Since July 2012 they have killed over 32 anti-polio workers and their police escorts. Yet valiant efforts continue to be made to provide immunisation cover to children. It is hoped the issue is on the agenda of the government team holding talks with the Taliban. As worrisome as the situation is in Fata and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa because of the Taliban, progress in other parts of the country too is a lot less than satisfactory, in fact alarming. A couple of months ago, a press report quoting a letter from WHO and UNICEF, partners in this country's polio eradication programme, talked of glaring operational irregularities. The letter said "missed and NA (not applicable) children pose the biggest challenge to Punjab as it tops the list of missed and NA children with the number reaching 134,877 in the campaign of September 2013, thus posing a formidable challenge to the polio eradication partners." The conclusion was based on a survey that showed out of a sample of 340 'missed' children in the province 205 were listed as unavailable during the national immunisation campaign days. If that was not bad enough, as many as 112 children could not receive anti-polio drops because vaccination teams never reached them.
Notably, polio drops have to be administered to children at multiple times to ensure immunity. If so many children have been completely missed the result can only be as bad as it is. Clearly, the field staff is responsible for criminal negligence of duty. Considering that Punjab is one of better run provinces there is reason to believe that things are not better in other parts of the country. It is about time provincial governments put their act together to redress the situation from both the givers and receivers' ends. Awareness drives ought to be intensified. And needless to say, an effective monitoring system should be put in place.
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Pakistan: The enduring polio challenge
The World Health Organisation has formally certified India and ten other South Asian nations polio-free, excluding Pakistan and Afghanistan - two of the world's three countries where polio is endemic. A separate damning verdict for the country on this account came the same day from the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) of the Global Polio Initiative, describing the situation as a "powder keg" which could ignite widespread polio transmission. "If the current trend continues", said the IMB Chairperson in a letter to WHO Director-General, "Pakistan will be the last place on earth in which polio exists." Unfortunately, so far efforts to reverse the trend have not met with much success. The National Institute of Health in Islamabad confirmed on Thursday reports of three new polio cases in North Waziristan, the area most affected by the Taliban's ban on immunisation of children against the crippling disease.
The biggest setback to the immunisation campaigns, of course, has been caused by the Taliban who have been offering violent resistance not only in the tribal areas but also in parts of Karachi and Quetta. Since July 2012 they have killed over 32 anti-polio workers and their police escorts. Yet valiant efforts continue to be made to provide immunisation cover to children. It is hoped the issue is on the agenda of the government team holding talks with the Taliban. As worrisome as the situation is in Fata and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa because of the Taliban, progress in other parts of the country too is a lot less than satisfactory, in fact alarming. A couple of months ago, a press report quoting a letter from WHO and UNICEF, partners in this country's polio eradication programme, talked of glaring operational irregularities. The letter said "missed and NA (not applicable) children pose the biggest challenge to Punjab as it tops the list of missed and NA children with the number reaching 134,877 in the campaign of September 2013, thus posing a formidable challenge to the polio eradication partners." The conclusion was based on a survey that showed out of a sample of 340 'missed' children in the province 205 were listed as unavailable during the national immunisation campaign days. If that was not bad enough, as many as 112 children could not receive anti-polio drops because vaccination teams never reached them.
Notably, polio drops have to be administered to children at multiple times to ensure immunity. If so many children have been completely missed the result can only be as bad as it is. Clearly, the field staff is responsible for criminal negligence of duty. Considering that Punjab is one of better run provinces there is reason to believe that things are not better in other parts of the country. It is about time provincial governments put their act together to redress the situation from both the givers and receivers' ends. Awareness drives ought to be intensified. And needless to say, an effective monitoring system should be put in place.
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