PRC vaccinates 150,000 kids vs polio

MANILA, Philippines —  Over 150,000 children from Metro Manila and Mindanao have been given the oral polio vaccine (OPV), according to the Philippine Red Cross.

 PRC chair and Sen. Richard Gordon said over the weekend that they surpassed their initial target to administer OPV to 100,000 children under five years as he revealed that, since Nov. 25, Red Cross was able to immunize a total of 155,530 children.

Of the total number, the greater bulk or 91,915 are from the National Capital Region (NCR), representing a vaccination rate of 184 percent of the initial 50,000 target, he added. In Mindanao, it covered 63,615 children or 13,615 more than its targeted 50,000 recipients.

“We are happy that parents are very cooperative and fully aware of the importance of vaccinations in maintaining a healthy society,” Gordon said in a statement.

 Following the resurgence of polio in the country, PRC worked with the Department of Health (DOH) and launched a parallel anti-polio campaign. It deployed 1,200 trained volunteers and 90 staff members to 15 cities in Metro Manila, and 65 cities and municipalities in Mindanao.

“They conducted house-to-house visits even in the hard-to-reach areas, amidst the heat and rain, to guarantee that every child will receive a dose of the vaccine and that no child is left behind,” the lawmaker noted.