DOH to conduct massive immunization vs. rising number of measles cases

Department of Health Undersecretary Rolando Domingo said on Saturday that the entire year will be dedicated to conducting a massive immunization program to protect the communities from the rising number of measles cases in the country.

In an interview on Super Radyo dzBB, Domingo said, "Itong buong taon po na ito magkakaroon ng massive immunization po ulit sa buong Pilipinas, sa lahat ng bata at syempre po sa mga lugar na nagkakaroon ng mga kaso."

"Magkakaroon tayo ng supplementary immunization activities para lang proteksyunan ang ating mga komunidad," he added.

He stressed that despite the decline of the parents' trust on vaccinations after the controversy surrounding the Dengvaxia dengue vaccine, the department will do everything to protect the public from diseases.

"Lahat po talaga susubukan natin, mostly ay ang pagtiyatiyagang pag-explain sa ating mga magulang lalo na sa mga nanay," Domingo said.

"Sabi nga namin, kung dati po siguro na voluntarily pupunta yung mga magulang, mga limang  minuto lang na usapan ay okay na, pero ngayon po kahit umabot ng kalahating oras para lang po maexplain sa ating mga magulang ang kahalagahan at kasiguruhan ng safety ng mga bakuna, gagawin naman po namin para lang po tayo ay makahabol," he added.

According to Domingo, just in the previous year, over 20,000 cases of measles were reported, four times more than what was reported back in 2017.

For 2019, Domingo said, "Ayaw namin maulit iyon. Kailangan talaga bakunahan ulit mga bata."

According to Domingo, children in barangays are annually scheduled for a vaccination even as the DOH continues to target covering more areas than previous years.

The DOH promotions team is continuing with its awareness campaign to stress the importance of vaccination.

Domingo said, "ito talaga isa sa mga pinakamagandang regalo para sa mga anak natin para maprotektahan sila sa mga sakit tyaka syempre ang komplikasyon at kamatayan ito ay ating maiwasan." — Kaela Malig/MDM, GMA News