Kenya To Launch New Door-To-Door Polio Vaccination Campaign
Kenya To Launch New Door-to-Door Polio Vaccination Campaign
In response to eight cases of imported polio identified since February, Kenya will launch a new door-to-door vaccination campaign, Kenya Broadcasting Corporation reports (Mwendo, Kenya Broadcasting Corporation, 4/22).
The eight cases are in the northern part of Kenya, according to David Okello, the World Health Organization's representative in Kenya, and are believed to have been imported from neighboring Sudan (Mbatiah, Africa Science News Service, 4/23).
The new campaign, which is the country's second round of vaccinations, will focus on the capital of Nairobi and the Central and Rift Valley provinces-the areas where people are at the highest risk of contracting polio, Capital News reports. In the first round last month, health workers reached 89% coverage by immunizing 1,971,510 children younger than age five, according to Ann Wamae, head of the Ministry of Health's children's program.
Wamae said her goal is to vaccinate 100% of children younger than age five in the campaign area. "We don't want to leave any child behind and we will not get these children unless" parents bring them to be vaccinated, she said.
The campaign will cover 42 districts and will run from Saturday through April 29. Wamae said that she expects the campaign to cost a total of 120 million shillings, approximately $1.5 million (Wanambisi, Capital News, 4/22).
Even if a child has received the vaccine already, he or she will be given it again, Wamae said, adding that there is no health risk if a child receives the vaccine more than once (Africa Science News Service, 4/23).
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