THE Department of Health in Davao (DOH-11) will kick off its massive synchronized polio vaccination Monday, October 14, targeting 186,869 children who are five years old and below.

The DOH-Davao Center for Health Development (CHD) will be having a Davao City launch of the Sabayang Patak Kontra Polio today from 8 a.m. to 12 noon in Barangay 5-A Gym, Bankerohan, Davao City.

The activity will be attended by representatives from DOH central office, DOH-Davao CHD, United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef), World Health Organization (WHO), and City Health Office (CHO).

In the previous press conference, DOH-11 Regional Director Annabelle Yumang said the first round of mass polio vaccination will be on October 14 to 27, covering all children five years old and below in Davao City and Davao del Sur, regardless of their immunization status. This means that even if the children have already received polio vaccines previously, they will still be given the vaccine.

The second round is slated on November 25 to December 27 and the third round will be on January 6 to 18, 2020. Both rounds will cover all provinces in the Davao Region and all regions in Mindanao.

The target of the massive vaccination is children five years old and below who will receive three doses of OPV and one dose of Inactive Polio Vaccine for them to be protected against poliovirus.

The two areas in Davao Region, Davao City and Davao del Sur, are part of the identified priority areas by the DOH.

Other priority areas are the National Capital Region, Lanao del Sur, and Marawi City.

Earlier, CHO confirmed that the poliovirus detected was from a water sample sourced from the Davao River near the Bolton Bridge area. This report alarmed health officials, as it poses risk for the children who are not yet immunized or have not yet completed their immunization against this crippling and fatal disease.

"Let us exert greater effort to overcome the challenges our country is facing today over vaccine-preventable diseases. Let us strengthen our partnership, utilize all possible initiatives to accelerate the eradication of these vaccine-preventable diseases. Let us all take part in this Sabayang Patak Kontra Polio and ensure that no child is left behind," Yumang said.