By Betheena Kae Unite
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III confirmed Monday another case of polio involving a nine-year-old girl in Basilan, bringing the total confirmed polio cases in the country to eight this year.
Department of Health Secretary Francisco Duque III (CZAR DANCEL / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)
After leading the third round of the Patak Polio vaccination campaign in Metro Manila at the Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital yesterday, Duque confirmed that the samples sent to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine and the National Institute of Infectious Diseases – Japan came out positive for poliovirus.
The confirmed polio case is a nine-year-old female from Basilan who has not received any polio vaccines.
"I’m sure it could be conflict -- 'di makapunta yung mga health workers para magbigay ng bakuna, or sila hard to reach dahil nasa conflict areas sila (I'm sure the cause is conflict in the area -- whether the health workers could not visit their location to give vaccinations or they are hard to reach because they live on the conflict-ridden areas)," Duque said.
The secretary, however, stressed that there is no need for a draconian measure like penalizing parents who fail to get their kids vaccinated against polio amid the latest confirmed case. A stricter compliance on vaccination against polio must be enforced, he said.
"Wag muna, wag munang ganun (penalizing the parents who fail to get their kids vaccinated). Masyadong draconian yung measures. We will convince them as what we are doing now. Lahat naman sila ay mamumulat ang kanilang mga mata sa malinaw na proteksyon na idinudulot ng bakuna (Not yet, let's not dwell on that yet. That is such a draconian measure. We will convince them as to what we are doing now. Eventually, they will be convinced about the protection vaccines can provide)," Duque said.
"We’re convincing parents, walang puhunan kundi yung maglalakad lamang kayo sa mga health centers o di kaya mamasahe ng kahit na kaunti para mabigyan ang anak ninyo ng complete bakuna laban sa nakakamatay na sakit (We are convincing the parents they don't have to invest. All they have to do is to walk or commute to the health centers to get their kids vaccinated)," he added.
He reminded the public of the next round of Sabayang Patak Kontra Polio from November 25 to December 7 in the National Capital Region and Mindanao.
All children under five years of age, regardless of immunization status, will receive a dose of the oral polio vaccine during the campaign.
“I urge all parents and caregivers of children under five years old to take part in the Sabayang Patak Kontra Polio campaign and have their children vaccinated by our health workers,” Duque emphasized.
Health workers and vaccination teams are set to go house-to-house to ensure that all children under five years of age are vaccinated, he said. Health centers, government hospitals, fixed vaccination posts in barangays and malls, terminals, and fast food chains, among others, will also be providing vaccination.
“We are thankful for the participation and continued support of our local government units and communities in this campaign. I am confident that we will be successful in halting this outbreak if we continue to work together and make sure that no child is left unvaccinated,” Duque added.
With the latest confirmed case, the health department is currently coordinating with the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao – Ministry of Health to maximize immunization coverage and intensify polio vaccination efforts in Basilan.
The health department also confirmed that the stocks of oral polio vaccine are sufficient and that preparations for the outbreak response immunization are underway.
It was also disclosed that the government is targeting to vaccinate 1.276 million children in Metro Manila and 5.2 million in Mindanao.
A polio outbreak was declared in September 2019 after a three-year-old girl from Lanao del Sur tested positive for poliovirus, the first confirmed case of polio since the Philippines was declared polio-free in 2000.