By Minerva Newman and Calvin Cordova
CEBU CITY – The Department of Health (DOH)-Central Visayas bared that in just seven days, from February 12 to18, they have vaccinated a total of 10,577 children, as they appealed for more public support and cooperation for their massive house-to-house and school-based measles immunization campaign in Negros Oriental and the rest of the region.
“This is a mere 2.8 percent of the 371,197 children that we targeted to vaccinate,” according to Jeanette Pauline Cortes of DOH-7 Center for Health Development (DOH-CHD).
(CZAR DANCEL / MANILA BULLETIN)
Cortes said the move was “our response to address the high number of measles cases in Central Visayas, which is included in the list of regions where measles outbreak have been declared.”
DOH7 officials lamented that only a handful has so far availed of free vaccinations since the establishment of vaccination posts in various areas in the region last February 12.
DOH7 reported that the number of dengue cases in Region 7 continues to soar. The latest fatality was an eight-month old boy from Carcar City, southern Cebu.
The boy died last January 30 at the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC) in Cebu City but it was only last February 18 that it was confirmed through laboratory examinations that he died of measles.
As of February 19, DOH 7 recorded 316 cases of measles with four deaths in Central Visayas. Of the total cases, 48 already have laboratory confirmations. Cortes said vaccination posts have been opened in Negros Oriental and Bohol.