Immunization: Health Ministry Targets Rural Communities

Towards ensuring that immunisation campaign achieves its target of over 80 percent, the Rivers State Ministry of Health says, it has provided modalities for trained health care providers to reach the interiors of the state.
Making this known in an exclusive interview, the Health Educator/Coordinator, Rivers State Social and Behavioural Change Communication Committee, Dr Doris Nria, said provisions, have been made to take the free immunisation exercise to the rural areas of the state.
“Because immunisation programme will be running concurrently in all the local government areas, and these areas will be empowered with boats or other means of transport, as well as logistics.
“In areas where boats are used for transport, implementing partners/Rivers State Government have put resources together to ensure that they are able to get boat or bicycle to enable the health workers get to these areas”, she explained.
Dr Nria further stated that in addition to specially trained health workers, “we have engaged many other persons that have the knowledge of health, to further enhance reaching the hard-to-reach areas.
Nria used the opportunity to call on the public especially parents and women of child bearing age to avail themselves the opportunity of being immunised against tetanus and other diseases.
The immunisation programmes set aside by the Federal Government to take care of the mother, new born and children from 0 -5 years.
According to Dr Nria, the implementing partners supporting the state on immunisation include UNICEF, World Health Organisation, the Challenge Initiative and the National Health Care Development Agency.

By: Sogbeba Dokubo