A free vaccination drive dubbed ‘Chikiting Ligtas’ was launched by the Cebu City Health Office on Friday, April 28, and will run for the whole month of May. | contributed photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — A free vaccination drive was launched by the Cebu City Health Office (CHO) on Friday, April 28, 2023, for kids aged 0 to 59 months old.
Dubbed “Chikiting Ligtas 2023” the month-long supplemental immunization campaign wants children immunized against vaccine-preventable diseases, like measles, rubella, and polio for free.
CHO head Dr. Daisy Villa said the activity, which will culminate on May 31, also serves as a catch-up immunization effort for children who have yet to receive their needed vaccines due to the COVID-19 pandemic-induced lockdowns in the past two years.
“Naputol atong routine immunization. So karon, gibuhat ni nato kay tungod kung imong kwentahon, mas daghan na ang atong mga susceptibles nga wala nato mahatagan sa [preventive] measures. Kani siya pag solbad para di ta muabot sa panahon nga mag outbreak,” Villa said.
Villa said they target to vaccinate 86,524 eligible children against measles, rubella, and 102,179 other children against oral polio.
Children aged nine months to 59 months are eligible for vaccination against measles-rubella, while children age zero to 59 months could already receive the oral polio vaccine
While parents and guardians could bring their children to their nearest health centers, the fixed sites for the vaccination drive, she said the CHO encourages barangay health centers to do a by purok or sitio-level vaccination, which, she said, is effective in increasing the vaccination accomplishment.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in a November 2022 report, said measles still claims an estimated 351 lives (mostly children) worldwide each day, and rubella is a leading cause of vaccine-preventable birth defects.
Polio, or poliomyelitis, on the other hand, is a “disabling and life-threatening disease” caused by the poliovirus. According to CDC, the virus spreads from person to person and can infect a person’s spinal cord, causing paralysis. /rcg
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