PESHAWAR: The health department is employing a new strategy to improve routine immunisation that was affected owing to polio vaccination and coronavirus-related activities in the province.

“Coverage of our routine immunisation has dropped from 80 per cent to 60 per cent due to the involvement of our staff in Covid-19 and polio vaccination. Now, we have conducted a complete review of all 36 districts to cope with the situation,” Dr Mohammad Arif Khan, the director of expanded programme on immunisation (EPI), told Dawn.

According to him, most of the EPI’s 3,500 technicians continue to remain engaged in Covid-19 vaccination and polio activities due to which the routine immunisation is likely to dip further. “We are employing a new strategy to improve the situation,” he added.

Dr Arif said that under the new arrangements, they segregated the EPI staff to be able to pay attention to the routine immunisation and continue polio and Covid-19 vaccination simultaneously.

Official says EPI staff remained busy in polio and Covid-19 vaccination

He said that the province had 61 per cent population fully inoculated against Covid-19 while the target was 90 per cent to ensure herd immunity against the virus as the pandemic was not over and all the people risked the virus. “At the same time, we also need to ensure that all the children get vaccine against poliomyelitis as the disease is endemic in the province,” he added.

He said that 1,100 fixed EPI centres were set up in the province where the children got jabs. “Over 80 per cent of our staff remains busy in Covid-19 and polio activities,” he added.

Dr Arif said that during the last 18 months, they were not able to accord attention to routine immunisation as the coronavirus was at peak. “However, we have decided to strengthen routine immunisation and safeguard children against 12 vaccine preventable ailments including poliomyelitis,” he added.

He said that most of their technicians and EPI district coordinators were completely involved in polio campaigns, right from preparation to the conclusion of every round and had no time to carry out outreach work for coverage of the routine immunisation of children. “Therefore, we have assigned special duties to EPI workers to continue their outreach activities at the union council level to ensure that the children are immunised,” he added.

Dr Arif said that the strategy included rationalisation of staff keeping in view the falling status of routine immunisation to save the situation from further deterioration. He said that staffers of EPI played important role in all sorts of vaccination due to their experience. “But we need to maintain proper coverage of routine immunisation in addition to polio and Covid-19,” he added.

He said that staffers would be deployed in low-performing union councils to reach to the children with zero doses and the defaulters to ensure their safety and enhance coverage.

“Vaccination is crucial for prevention of diseases and our latest strategy is aimed at continuing Covid-19, polio as well as routine immunisation. At the onset of Covid-19, our workers also visited hotspot areas and collected samples from the suspected people to be tested. The EPI has assumed great significance because it has to stay involved in all sorts of vaccination from polio to Covid-19 and routine,” said Dr Arif.

He said that alongside immunisation, they were also campaigning to scale up public awareness to strengthen polio and Covid-19 vaccination.

Published in Dawn, July 14th, 2022