By Samuel Akumatey
Ho, Sep. 03, GNA – The Ho Municipality is recording good patronage of the first-round polio vaccination exercise currently ongoing throughout the country.
Vaccination teams deployed by the Ho Municipal Health Directorate are targeting more than 47,000 children under five years for the nOPV2 vaccine, rolled out against the polio virus’ re-emergence in parts of the country.
Madam Victoria Kpelli, Municipal Director for Health Services, said the exercise had been “so far going on well,” and that intermittent rain showers, did not significantly affect output of field vaccination teams.
“It rained in Hoe Klave yesterday, but we met our targets” she said.
The Municipality has deployed teams for each of the 47 zones in the Municipality, which comprises a vaccinator and a volunteer, who helps mark a thumbnail of the children, and each is to administer doses to 150 to 200 children daily.
Social mobilisers had been deployed ahead of the exercise to each zone, to inform households on the event, and would work through the vaccination period.
“The uptake is good, and we have not had any difficulties,” the health director said, and commended high publicity around the exercise, which had been supported by corporate society and organisations including the Electricity Company of Ghana, the Rotary Club, Ministry of Agriculture and the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE).
She said the Service had in place levels of managing resistance and was confident any such would be successfully handled by the various supervisors.
The Ho Municipality had been cited among areas with the least vaccination coverage, and Dr Senanau Dzokoto, Acting Volta Regional Director of Health Services, has called on all to support efforts to attain full coverage.
Shine Gavey, the Municipal Health Promotion Officer, said the social mobilisers were selected from the communities, and deserved recommendation for the success of the exercise.
She said all available avenues of communication available were being utilized, including radio, community announcement centers and vans.
The GNA followed a vaccination team through a packed Ho Central market on Friday, and observed good uptake, with no resistance from mothers of children eligible for the dose, which was being administered orally.
Enyonam, whose daughter was vaccinated, said she had confidence in the programme, and urged mothers to readily cooperate with the health workers.
Janet Badu, the community health nurse, who led the team, said nine out of ten mothers readily cooperated, and that the few resistances were successfully managed after a brief education.
The first round of immunization runs from September 01 to September 04, with the second round coming off from October 06 to October 09, 2022.
A total of 387631 children in the Volta Region are being targeted, and teams would reach out to homes, schools, and other public areas.
GNA