Ben Madilynn
THE Davao City Health Office (CHO) will be conducting a school-based immunization campaign to safeguard children from diseases such as measles and rubella.
Dr. Julinda Acosta, head of the technical division of CHO, said during the ISpeak media forum on Thursday morning, October 3, 2024, at the City Mayor’s Office that they plan to administer vaccinations for measles, rubella, tetanus, diphtheria, and the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) for female students.
“Kaning school-based immunization mag-una kini sa mga grade one, four, and seven so unsa ang mga bakuna na ihatag sa mga grade one, kani atoang gitawag na MR-Measles and Rubella, Tetanus and Diphtheria and also sa atoang grade four mao ni atong ginatawag na HPV,” she said.
(Our school-based immunization will first start with grades one, four, and seven, so the vaccine that we will administer to grade one students is what we call MR — Measles and Rubella, Tetanus and Diphtheria, and for grade four, we will administer what we call HPV)
Acosta added that they will only conduct this immunization in public schools in Davao City, targeting students in grades one, four, and seven. The event will take place from October to November.
She explained that the reason for immunizing students in schools is to prevent them from contracting rubella and German measles.
If a pregnant woman contracts German measles, the child she is carrying may be susceptible to congenital cataracts, cochlear deafness, cardiac issues, and congenital heart diseases, among many others. Therefore, it is essential to vaccinate children to prevent these diseases and maintain their immunity levels.
For female students in grade four, they are advised to receive the HPV vaccination to protect them against cervical cancer.
CHO plans to vaccinate all enrolled students in grades one, four, and seven in public schools in the city. They aim to vaccinate 34,825 grade one students, 17,150 grade four students, and 36,526 grade seven students, eyeing to achieve a 100 percent vaccination rate.
The school-based immunization will be kicked off on October 7, 2024, starting at Kapitan Tomas Monteverde Central Elementary School.
Acosta shared that the school-based immunization marks the resumption of their programs, which were heavily impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. She said that they were unable to conduct immunizations in schools due to blended learning and had only carried out community-based immunizations, which yielded a low turnout rate.
She hopes that with the two-month operation, the turnout rate will be high and that parents will give their consent for their children to receive vaccines against these diseases.
Before the children are vaccinated, the office will conduct orientations in collaboration with the Department of Education (DepEd) to inform parents about the benefits of vaccinating their children. RGP
