AFTER the Department of Health (DOH) declared a polio outbreak in the country, the Davao City Health Office (CHO) said it currently has a shortage of the inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) for children outside the target zero to 12 months age group.
IPV and the oral poliovirus vaccines (OPV) are the predominant vaccines used in the fight to eradicate polio.
"Meron talagang kakulangan kasi yung number of IPVs enough lang siya sa targeted age group. Katong mga wala napa-vaccinate ila anak between 0 and 12 months this year, tapos karon lang siya magpa-vaccinate, diha mi kulangan og supply (We have shortage of IPVs for those who were not able to have their children vaccinated between 0 and 12 months old because the supply is only enough for those who are at the target age group)," CHO technical division head Julinda Acosta said Friday, September 27, in a phone interview.
Based on CHO's 2019 data, only 36,993 or 2.7 percent of the city's total projected population of 1,775,934 comprise the targeted group.
She also said they are still doing an inventory on the available IPVs, but some health centers reported that they were not able to give the third dosage of the OPV due to the lack of supply of IPV.
Based on CHO's guidelines, IPV must be injected to the children within the targeted age while simultaneously taking the third dosage of the OPV.
"Bisan naa siya'y OPV, pero pag wala siya'y IPV, dili siya totally protected sa type 2 (polio) virus. IPV kasi can add more immunity (Even if the child has undertaken OPV, however the absence of the IPV will not totally protect your child from the type 2 virus. IPV can further give your child full immunity from polio)," Acosta said.
Type 2 polio virus was one of those traced in a recently confirmed study by DOH and Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environmental Management Bureau that was detected from the Davao River near the Bolton Bridge area.
But she said the CHO recently received 500 vials of IPV, which can cater to 5,000 children.
Meanwhile, in case of IPV's lack of supply, Acosta encouraged the parents to avail it in the private hospitals. She said, though, that it will be costly as compared to those given for free in health centers.
She also reminded the parents to let their children zero to 12 months to be vaccinated to avoid experiencing this situation.
"Sa amo nalang gani nga wala pa gyu'y bayad, di pa gyud magpabakuna. Lagot kaayo no? (They could've done it earlier in the health centers since it is free, but still they do not go there. Isn't it frustrating?)" Acosta said.
Aside from the vaccination, children are advised to practice proper hygiene and avoid swimming in riverbanks and other water sources with unsure sanitation.
The CHO, meanwhile, will roll out a massive anti-polio immunization starting October 14. (With reports from Elijah Daniel Romero, UM Intern)