THE Department of Health (DOH) in Western Visayas called on the public to still trust other vaccines given by the government for free despite the Dengvaxia scare.
Dr. Reynilyn Reyes, point person for national immunization program of DOH-Western Visayas, said the Dengvaxia vaccine issue had surely created fear among the public, especially parents of schoolchildren.
Reyes, who also heads the family, health and nutrition cluster, reiterated that schoolchildren in Western Visayas were not among those given the controversial anti-dengue vaccine, thus the public has nothing to fear about.
"We appealed to the parents not to create fear among themselves by still submitting their children to the government's immunization program whether in health centers or schools," Reyes told SunStar Bacolod, adding that aside from anti-dengue, "we still have other existing vaccines that are proven to be effective and safe."
The government also provides vaccines, including those for polio, measles, tetanus diphtheria, 5N1, and BCG for tuberculosis, among others.
Reyes said the DOH-Western Visayas will intensify the campaign to increase public awareness that not all vaccines given through the National Immunization Program (NIP) are posing health risks.
Though it might be a tough task, she said the DOH regional office will continue to work on eradicating possible stigma created by the Dengvaxia mess and getting back the public's trust towards the agency.
"Let us not generalize the Dengvaxia issue, not all vaccines are similar to that of anti-dengue," she added.
In 2016, the DOH launched the anti-dengue vaccination initiative in regions like Central Luzon, Calabarzon, and National Capital Region. The program was, however, stopped recently after Dengvaxia maker Sanofi Pasteur announced possible risk if the drug is administered to individuals not previously infected with dengue.
Even though Western Visayas was not included, the DOH regional office still included in its surveillance the monitoring of possible patients, who may had received the vaccine through private clinics.
"As of now, we have not received any report of patients claiming that they were given Dengvaxia in private clinics or schools in those three recipient-regions," Reyes said.
Still, the DOH urged the public to immediately seek medical help if they are experiencing symptoms of the deadly virus.
"Not vaccinated by Dengvaxia should not be an excuse from submitting themselves to medication," Reyes said, adding most dengue victims die due to failure to seek early treatment.
Investigation on the Dengvaxia fiasco is now rolling. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque earlier said the government may file corresponding cases against Sanofi Pasteur.
These charges are on top of the lawsuit, which can be filed by the parents of children found to have been affected by the anti-dengue vaccine, he said.
Public health experts insisted that the government has the moral obligation to the families affected by the incident which they call the "biggest public scam."
"The government, through PhilHealth, will be willing to shoulder the medical expenses of possible patients," Roque said.
Recipients of the vaccine will only have dengue if they have not acquired the virus prior to the immunization, the government official said.