Measles: Bauchi records 80% coverage in immunisation exercise

The Bauchi State Government said on Sunday that it recorded 80 per cent success during a five-day immunisation exercise against measles which covered 1.6 million children.

Dr Fauti Ahmed, the Director, Disease Control and Immunisation, Bauchi State Primary Health Care Development Agency (PHCDA), said this in Bauchi in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

Ahmed disclosed that over 5,000 doses of vaccines were administered on children between nine and 59 months within the period.

He said that the agency deployed 1,615 teams of medical experts and set up 2,454 posts in the state during the exercise.

The posts, he said, were set up in hospitals, primary health care centres, palace of traditional rulers and other designated places.

Ahmed said each team comprised of two medical experts, two vaccinators and a recorder as well as town criers.

He recalled that the exercise was organised by the Federal Government to close the gap that might have been created by routine immunisation.

Ahmed said doctors, primary health care assistants, technicians and hospital assistants also participated in the exercise.

He said that Adversed Event Following Immunisation (AEFI) kits were provided at each post to cater for the side effects resulting from the vaccines.

The director said AEFI activities lasted for 42 days to ensure that children with side effects after the exercise were taken care of.

He also said that children of herdsmen and Internally displaced Persons were tracked down on various routes and in camps for immunisation by special teams.(