DOH to 'carpet bomb' whole country with polio vaccine

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http://www.inq7.net/brk/2002/jan/26/brkpol_1-1.htm

 

DOH to 'carpet bomb' whole
country with polio vaccine
Posted: 2:00 AM (Manila Time) | Jan. 26, 2002
By Armand N. Nocum
Inquirer News Service

HEALTH Secretary Manuel Dayrit has promised to "carpet bomb" the entire Philippine archipelago with the vaccine to immunize children five years old and under against a new strain of polio.

The Department of Health (DOH) has set Feb. 2-8 and March 2-8 for about 50,000 health workers to visit every home in the country to administer the polio vaccine to children.

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And if that doesn't cover every child, Dayrit said, the DOH would put up immunization centers at the domestic airports to immunize children who may be traveling.

"We have also asked the police and military to escort doctors and medical personnel to high-risk areas so they could safely administer the polio vaccine," Dayrit said.

The DOH launched the immunization campaign after it found three children in Cavite and Laguna provinces south of Manila and Cagayan de Oro City in Mindanao who were afflicted with a new mutant strain of the polio virus.

"I call on all parents, rich or poor, to have their children vaccinated to protect them from the new virus," Dayrit said.

ALL INFORMATION, DATA, AND MATERIAL CONTAINED, PRESENTED, OR PROVIDED HERE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS REFLECTING THE KNOWLEDGE OR OPINIONS OF THE PUBLISHER, AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED OR INTENDED AS PROVIDING MEDICAL OR LEGAL ADVICE.  THE DECISION WHETHER OR NOT TO VACCINATE IS AN IMPORTANT AND COMPLEX ISSUE AND SHOULD BE MADE BY YOU, AND YOU ALONE, IN CONSULTATION WITH YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.