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- April 29, 2024
- Kainat Shakeel
- 0
ISLAMABAD: Monday marks the start of a nationwide immunization program aimed at protecting over 24 million children under five from the poliovirus. Islamabad, ten districts in Punjab, twenty-four districts in Sindh, twenty-six districts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and thirty districts in Balochistan will all be the sites of the campaign. Throughout the campaign, groups of medical professionals will visit homes. Dr. Malik Mukhtar Ahmed Bharath, the PM’s Coordinator for National Health Services, stated that the government was dedicated to shielding kids from this debilitating illness.
“Poliovirus remains a serious threat to children’s wellbeing as multiple sewage samples across the country have tested positive for the virus in recent months,” he stated. According to Dr. Bharath, there is no treatment for the illness, thus the only thing that can keep kids safe is to give them polio drops. Districts with a high risk of poliovirus spread are hosting a crucial campaign, according to Dr. Shahzad Baig, coordinator of the National Emergency Operations Center for Polio Eradication. “This year, we have identified the virus in more than 31 districts. Consequently, we are carrying out consistent immunization campaigns in all districts that pose a high risk of contracting polio to protect children from infection,” the official stated.
The majority of those affected by polio, a highly contagious disease brought on by the poliovirus, are young children. Although polio has no known cure, immunization is the only reliable method of shielding kids from this debilitating illness. Millions of youngsters have been immune to polio thanks to repeated vaccinations, which have made practically all countries in the globe polio-free, except for Pakistan and Afghanistan.