Benin city – Edo State Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole will today, Friday 18th March 2016 at the Immunization unit of Central Hospital, Benin City flag — off the year 2016 2nd Round National Immunization Plus Days (NIPDS) in the State.
The State Commissioner for Health, Dr. (Mrs.) Aihanuwa Eregie who disclosed this in her office while briefing the press on the activities in the Immunization Programme said that the weeklong exercise commenced in the State from Saturday 19th and will last till Tuesday, 22 March, 2016.
According to her, the national Immunization Plus is a strategy designed to ensure that every child 0-59 months of age is given the Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV) together with other routine immunization antigens such as Measles Vaccine, BCG, Yellow Fever Vaccine, Pnenmococcal Conjugate Vaccine and Pertavalent Vaccine.
Dr. Eregie who posited that there is no cure for Polio, but it can be prevented emphasized that Oral Polio Vaccine and inactivated Polio Vaccine are good, not harmful, safe and free.
She stated that Nigeria has recorded some remarkable progress in the fight against Polio with no wild Polio case since July, 2014 resulting in the removal of the country from the list of Polio endemic countries, adding that the nation is currently implementing the Endgame strategic plan towards eradicating Polio as a way of consolidating on the gains so far made.
Edo State, she said, has been Polio free since March, 2009 and the Polio — Free status must be: sustained during this exercise by reaching all children in the urban and rural communities, especially those living in hard and difficult terrains.
She however appealed to our mothers/Caregiver to embrace the immunization Programme by bringing out all children in the target age group for immunization.
