ABUJA – Kogi State Primary Health Care Development Agency (PHCDA) has commenced a campaign for the vaccination of children against Measles Rubella, which will start from October 4 to October 13 this year.
The agency’s executive director, Dr. Musa Muazu, disclosed this at a one-day media orientation forum held for selected media organisations in Lokoja.
The executive director who was represented by the deputy director, Administration, Mallam Musa Bashir, hinted that the vaccination for Measles Rubella, also known as German Measles, is meant for children between nine months and 14 years.
Muazu said that the essence of the one-day media engagement is to acquaint journalists with relevant information about Measles Rubella, which would enhance effective awareness creation and enlightenment of citizens, down to the grass-roots, on the preventive campaign.
According to the executive director, the preventive Measles Rubella vaccination campaign is expected to be carried out in the 21 local government areas of Kogi State at designated posts such as palaces of traditional rulers, market places and motor parks.
“However, after the October campaign, Measles Rubella vaccination would now return to our normal routine immunisation”, Dr. Muazu explained.
He then called on parents across the 21 local government areas of the state to make their children available in their large numbers for the preventive vaccination against the dreaded disease.
He stressed that the media partnership would no doubt give adequate publicity that would facilitate the huge success of the preventive vaccination campaign project
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Earlier, Dr. Abdulrahman Hudu of UNICEF, told participants that Measles Rubella is a respiratory illness which can be contracted through transmission, airborne and direct contact.
He explained that Measles Rubella, which is also called German Measles, is a little bit different from normal measles, saying that the only way to tackle the disease is through preventive measures, through vaccine application since it is not curable.
He further explained that the virus could be tackled through 95% preventable vaccination.
“Symptoms and hazards of measles or measles rubella includes: skin rashes, running nose, fever, brain damage, cough, blindness and death”, Dr. Hudu enumerated.