“The Importance of Getting the Flu Vaccine in La Paz: Protecting Against Deadly Respiratory Infections and Pneumonia”

The flu vaccine will allow people who receive it to be protected against viruses that are circulating in the country. The Ministry of Health reported that 226 people have died from acute respiratory infections or pneumonia and 11 of them were under 20 years of age. Against this background, 200 vaccinator brigades are circulating in different areas of La Paz.

“The strategy we have is to go house to house, what we want is for parents to be responsible with the children and we can grant the card to follow up on the vaccine. In the same way they are going out to schools and educational units”, declared Erika Chávez, head of the Expanded Immunization Program (PAI) of the Headquarters.

Each of the 200 brigades is made up of the vaccinator and the person who keeps the record. These can be identified by the white aprons and the freezers in which they transport the vaccines. “They are in all the areas and the schedule will be posted on the social networks of the Headquarters. We are only going out to peri-urban neighborhoods of the municipality of La Paz ”, he pointed out.

The brigades also carry out vaccinations against polio and measles. In children under five years of age, the only requirement that the vaccination brigades ask for is the follow-up card. To apply the dose against influenza in people over five years of age, a photocopy of their ID is needed and it is only open to risk groups, such as children under 12 years of age, pregnant women, people over 60 years of age and the chronically ill.

In the event that the brigades do not reach their neighborhood, parents can go to the health centers closest to their home to request, free of charge, the vaccines. “We ask that the population can open the doors for us, since we will go with the brigades in urban and peri-urban areas. We are also seeking to be certified free of polio and measles,” he stated.

The influenza vaccine that is being distributed in the municipality of La Paz is a trivalent inactivated virus. That is to say that it has three types of strains A / Sydney, A Darwin and B / Austria Associates. This drug prevents the person from getting H1N1 and H3N2, which were already circulating in the country.

In addition, they recommended that children under the age of eight who have never received a flu vaccine should receive two doses, one month apart. On the other hand, if they are older than eight years, only one dose is placed. The specialists ask not to fear the vaccine because it can be given from six months of age to 99, because it does not produce very marked adverse effects.

The only discomfort is a little pain in its application, a headache or weakness in the next 24 hours. The great advantage is that it will allow the immunized person, especially children, to be protected against influenza.

It is important that children receive the vaccine as soon as possible because the protection of the inoculant occurs 15 days after receiving the dose. In this way, minors will be more protected before the start of the winter season and a greater drop in temperatures.

On Monday, the Ministry of Health reported that ARI caused the death of 226 people in the country. Of these, 11 were under 20 years of age and 170 were older adults. So far this year, 1.4 million cases have been registered, that is, about 350,000 more than in 2022.

In addition, in the municipal hospitals La Merced, Los Pinos, La Portada and Cotahuma, and in Auxilio La Paz 167, they are vaccinated against influenza 24 hours a day, seven days a week.