Lagos State government on Tuesday revealed that it will kick off Measles Rubella vaccination campaign on January 20 for ten days and additional two days for mop up with the goal of reaching 10.5 million children and reduce the burden of vaccines preventable diseases.
The State Immunisation Officer of Lagos State Primary Health Care Board, Dr Oluwakemi Oshodi, who revealed this during a media orientation programme on Measles Rubella vaccine, tasked the media and critical stakeholders on helping to curb misinformation about vaccines.
According to her, the state is committed to tackling wrong messaging about vaccines with the right information and campaign so that the people can get better educated about the importance and the impact of vaccines.
The Immunisation Programme Coordinator, Lagos State Primary Health Care Board, Dr Adetola Akinpelu, said that the goal within the 12 days of the immunisation exercise is to achieve nothing less than 95 per cent coverage for the about 10.5 million children of ages nine months and 14 years living in Lagos State.
He noted that one of the major threats to receiving immunisation vaccines is misinformation despite the huge advantages it offers, imploring the media to educate residents about the importance of vaccines.
He added that 90 per cent of persons who come in contact with anyone with Measles Rubella will likely be infected, but with vaccines the negative impact will be likely neutralised
He also said that it is usually mild in children but can have severe consequences during pregnancy, leading to congenital rubella syndrome in newborns with lifelong disabilities such as heart disease.
According to him, each year, an estimate of 10,000 children are born with congenital rubella syndrome in Nigeria representing one third of global incidents.
Speaking on the impact of vaccines, he said that over the last 50 years, safe vaccine use worldwide has averted about 94 million deaths, while measles rubella immunisation has the potential to avert 2.8 million deaths in Nigeria and contribute to global shift in immunisation coverage.
“Nigeria contributes significantly to the burden of measles and rubella globally as Nigeria is second to DR Congo.
Many under 14 in Nigeria has not received the Rubella Measles vaccine.”
On her part, the Director, Health Education and Promotion Services, Lagos State Primary Healthcare Board, Adesola Grace-Honfor, tasked the media about letting the people know the importance of measles rubella vaccine for ages nine months and 14 and that the state government has the interest of the citizens because when the children is healthy that the parents can be healthy.
The UNICEF representative, Seyi Nubi, enjoined journalists to identify, counter and correct misinformation about Measles Rubella vaccine in order to strengthen public confidence in the safety, effectiveness and quality of the measles rubella vaccine.
