Regional health authorities are now embarking on various strategies to improve the region’s fully immunized coverage and meet the targeted 95 percent immunization rate.
Dr. Alisa Castro, head of the national immunization program, said that part of the initiatives that are in place is the partnership of the health department with local governments and the private sector to consolidate their respective immunization data that will contribute in significantly improving the region’s immunization rate.
Last year, the Cordillera reported an immunization rate of 65.03 percent which is way below the target of 95 percent. For the first quarter of this year, the region’s immunization rate was pegged at 15.52 percent before improving to 20.72 percent in April.
Castro said that the health department already linked up with the Philippine Pediatric Society–Baguio-Benguet chapter for the members to report to the local government and the agency the data on the children vaccinated in their private clinics to help achieve the targeted immunization rate.
She claimed that the agency was also able to locate a vaccine supplier where it could procure some vaccines at the regional level to avoid delays in the vaccination of children, especially in inoculating the prescribed vaccines in their early ages.
The DOH medical officer noted that among the issues confronting the vaccination in the region include vaccination hesitancy and fear, especially from parents who have their children vaccinated for the first time where they experienced some side effects; mobility of people in and out of the Cordillera; the presence of geographically isolated areas that often results to problems on vaccine delivery and vaccine logistics and shortage of vaccines provided by the central office.
She recognized the presence of a highly educated population in the region where parents often opt to have their children vaccinated in private clinics that affects the realization of the targeted immunization rate that is why the projected roll out of the agreement between local governments and the private sector for data sharing on the vaccinated children in private clinics.
According to her, there are also instances when vaccines are wasted because there are only a few children that are vaccinated in far flung areas and excess doses from the vials that are opened are often discarded because of the short shelf life of the vaccine.
Castro explained that the proposed agreement with local governments and the private sector is expected to be signed this month while the roll out of the partnership on data sharing with the private sector on the vaccinated children in private clinics will be rolled out next month.
One of the 8-point agenda of the present administration is to achieve a 95 percent immunization rate among children aged 0-5 to help them combat the prevalence of vaccine preventable illnesses and avoid their health condition from being compromised.
Health experts advised the public to avail of the available vaccines from the various health facilities around the country which are supposed to be inoculated during the life stages for them to be spared from contracting severe vaccine-preventable illnesses that might compromise their health condition. By Dexter A. See