Bolivia’s Ministry of Health launches massive polio vaccination campaign with over 1 million doses

La Paz, April 13, 2024 (ATB Digital) .- With the objective of consolidating the eradication of poliomyelitis in Bolivia, the Ministry of Health and Sports and the Departmental Health Services (Headquarters) will apply 1,173,255 vaccines, between first and second doses, in the Vaccination Week of the Americas (SVA) that will take place from April 23 to May 12 throughout Bolivia.

The work was coordinated by the Minister of Health and Sports, Maria Renée Castro, with the nine directors of the Headquarters.

“We now have as a general objective in this campaign to consolidate the eradication of poliomyelitis in Bolivia, for which we are going to prioritize vaccination in boys and girls between five and eight years of age with the IPV anti-polio vaccine that we have in all health facilities. Castro reported.

Between April and May, the goal is to protect girls and boys from polio, applying 1,173,255 vaccines, between first and second doses, to those who have not received the first dose or have not completed the vaccination schedule between 2016 and 2019.

To achieve the objective, the campaign will be strengthened with 394 nurses from the health system, who have extensive experience in the vaccination process. While the doses will be available in all health centers in the country, the managing entities, with brigades in the educational units, cites a report from the Ministry of Health.

Within the strategy, actions will also be articulated with the Ministry of Education, the Departmental Directorates of Education, the District Directorates of Education, in the public and private spheres of the Regular, Alternative and Convention Education System.

Likewise, parents and school boards will have a primary role for vaccination in educational units with timely information.

“The Single Student Registry will be contrasted with the Nominal Electronic Vaccination Registry (RNVe) as an updated mechanism to be able to obtain the digital vaccination card throughout the national territory,” added the minister.

With the short-term managing entities, through the Short-Term Social Security Supervision Authority (ASUSS), data will be updated to incorporate and work with the insured and uninsured population, and that the vaccine is available to the entire population. Bolivian population.

State programs such as the Juana Azurduy Bonus Program, Safci Misalud, Oral Health, the Health Promotion Unit, among other programs at the national level, will promote vaccination through different strategies and socialization of the importance of immunization against polio.

In this context, the Minister of Health and Sports highlighted that the national government allocated a budget of more than Bs 35 million to reach the greatest number of girls and boys during this campaign.

Poliomyelitis, or commonly called polio, is a highly contagious disease caused by the poliovirus.

The vast majority of poliovirus infections do not cause symptoms, but 5 to 10 out of every 100 people infected with poliovirus may develop some flu-like symptoms. In 1 in 200 cases the virus destroys parts of the nervous system, causing permanent paralysis in the legs or arms. Although very rare, the virus can attack the parts of the brain that help you breathe, which can cause death.

The last positive case of polio in Bolivia was recorded in 1989 in the department of La Paz, according to data from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).

Americas Vaccination Week is a regional initiative that each year promotes equity and access to vaccination in all countries in the Americas region.

Thus, more than 40 countries and territories in the Americas come together to raise awareness about the importance of immunization to protect children against serious vaccine-preventable diseases.

Source: ABI