By Danzumi Ishaku Jalingo.
The Taraba State Primary Health Care Development Agency is to vaccinate 639, 713 children against measles and meningitis.
The Executive Director of the agency, Aminu Jauro Hassan made this known on Friday at the Advocacy meeting organized by the TSPHCDA in collaboration with journalists for the success of Taraba state 2019 integrated meningitis and measles vaccination campaign held in Jalingo.
Represented by the Director of Community Health, Chindo Usman, Hassan urged journalists in the state to use their various media to reach the out to the public on the need to fight against these ugly killer diseases.
Presenting a paper titled” Advocacy Journalism”, Health Educator in Taraba state Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Mrs. Mercy Maigoge said the role of Journalists in educating the public on issues cannot be overemphasize and urged to maintain the tempo.
She also appealed to the media to enlighten parents on the need to present their children at the designated health centers for the vaccination, noting that the exercise is different from that of polio that the health passonels used to visit house to house.
On his part, C4D UNICEF Consultant, said Measles is a dangerous disease caused by infection with Rubeola Virus.
” it spreads from one infected person to another and it affects mostly children and it can lead to their death.
“Children under 5 years and those who are not vaccinated against Measles are at the risk of contracting the disease,’ She said.
He encouraged people, especially parents to know that although immunization prevents 2-3 million children death annually (WHO 2019) and is one of the cost effective ways of preventing the disease, yet about 3 million children under five still die annually from diseases such as measles, Yellow fever and meningitis.
Our reporter who attended the Meeting, reports that the campaign which is to kick start from 16th to 23rd of November is aimed at targeting children under the ages of nine months to five years for Measles and one to five years for Meningitis.
