The National Ministry of Health, UNICEF, the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) and the Argentine Society of Pediatrics (SAP) today relaunched the #VacunAction campaign, with the aim of reinforcing the importance of complying with the National Vaccination Calendar in girls and boys on their return to face-to-face classes, and promote vaccines as the best health strategy for the prevention and control of preventable diseases.
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The country has one of the national vaccination schedules, mandatory and free most complete in the region; however, according to WHO and UNICEF data (2020), Latin America faces a downward trend in coverage. In Argentina, between 2009 and 2020, there was an average decrease of 10 percentage points in coverage, according to the Ministry of Health of the Nation (2022).
In Argentina No autochthonous cases of measles have been recorded since 2000 and of congenital rubella since 2009. The last case of poliomyelitis was in 1984, of diphtheria in 2006, of neonatal tetanus in 2007 and the cases of liver transplants due to the hepatitis A virus were reduced by more than 96%. To sustain these and achieve new achievements, it is key to maintain high vaccination coverage.
In that sense, the Minister of Health of the Nation, Carla Vizzotti, He reported that “A working table is in operation in conjunction with the Ministry of Education in which it was defined as a priority to stimulate pediatric vaccination of COVID-19 and Calendar, both in children and adolescents, as well as in teachers and the entire educational community.“, and I add “the start of the school year has to be restorative”.
“The scenario of decreased vaccination threatens to reverse the progress made in eliminating preventable diseases in children and adolescents in recent decades”, he explained Luisa Brumana, Representative of UNICEF Argentina. “It is necessary to prioritize all efforts so that boys and girls have access to vaccines and thus have greater opportunities to develop their full potential“, Held.
Furthermore, as explained Rudolph Pablo Moreno, president of the Argentine Society of Pediatrics (SAP), “vaccines benefit both vaccinated people and unvaccinated and susceptible people living around them”. “We know that high vaccination coverage is a fundamental action to achieve a society with more and better health”, he stressed.
“Routine vaccination is essential to protect the health of children and adolescents, and to prevent the appearance of outbreaks of diseases that have been under control for years. We must act urgently to face the risks that the pandemic has posed to their health, education and social opportunities so that no child and adolescent is left behind.”, he expressed Eva Jane Llopis, PAHO/WHO Representative in Argentina.
The relaunch of the campaign #VacunAction seeks to sensitize families, guardians and caregivers of children and adolescents on the importance of regaining access to the National Vaccination Calendar, especially when returning to face-to-face classes.
Through a game of questions and answers about the history, myths and realities of immunization, published on the networks of UNICEF Argentina, PAHO/WHO, SAP and the National Ministry of Health, the campaign seeks to make known where you can access the vaccines, which ones are mandatory and free.
As part of the initiative, in addition, two interactive totems were installed at the Ministry of Health stand in Tecnópolis so that families can play the trivia of the campaign, with a set of questions and answers that allows them to go through different stages. All the people who participate in the action also receive information about the compulsory and free vaccinations of the National Vaccination Calendar.
For more information, go to this link.
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