Immunization: Expert Seeks Policy On Tetanus Booster Dose

The State Immunization Officer, Rivers State Primary Healthcare Management Board, Dr Inwon Joseph Urang, has called for a state government policy on administering Tetanus Booster Dose to both pre-school and school age children in the State.
Dr Urang, who made the call in a recent presentation on “Update on Immunization in Rivers State”, stated that the policy on Tetanus Booster Dose is necessitated by developments in the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH) and other tertiary hospitals that have recorded large number of tetanus in school age children.
“We are actually making advocacy for policy change, so that we can introduce a booster dose of tetanus (vaccines) for pre-school and school age children.
“This is because of the findings from UPTH and other tertiary hospitals where we are having large number of tetanus cases in school age children who are coming down with tetanus”, he said.
He explained that currently, pre-school age children are given Penta Vaccines 1,2, and 3, which is five vaccines in one, and given to the child at 6,10, and 14 weeks old.
Urang noted that so far there is a drop in cases of vaccines preventable diseases, meaning that immunization is “doing fairly well” in the State.
According to him, “we are not seeing large cases of measles, we’re not seeing large number of diphtheria, etc. Once you are not seeing them, it actually shows that immunization is getting to these children. So, the burden of these illnesses are reduced”.
While noting that immunization in the State faces numerous challenges, Dr Urang identified what he called “Denominator issue” as a major challenge.
Denominator issue, he said, has to do with accurate number of children to be vaccinated, and the actual number that are vaccinated.
“We need to work out a practical way of having the actual number of persons that we need to vaccinate, and actually improve on it”, he said.

By: Sogbeba Dokubo