A health worker rides on a motorcycle to vaccinate children with the oral polio drug.The vaccine is being phased out for preference to the Injectable Polio Vaccine (IPV).

In a bid to increase immunity of children across the globe, Uganda is among the countries that are slowly phasing out oral polio vaccines to replace it with the new type of injectable vaccine which experts say offers extra health protection to the children.

Presenting a paper on the new immunization programme, the deputy programme manager at United National Expanded Programme on Immunisation (UNEPI), Dr. Henry Luzze recently confirmed that this type of vaccine dubbed ‘injectable polio vaccine’ (IPV) was recommended by the Global Health Organization after a full study on how it works and its advantages compared to the current vaccine used in 60 countries across the globe.

Luzze revealed that Uganda is among the countries that are yet to fully embrace that vaccine for the elimination of polio in the country’s population by 2020.

“As UNEPI, we are very sure that when Uganda finally fully embraces the new injectable polio vaccine, then the country’s population will be free from the disease and ensure that there is a health population,” Luzze said.

With Uganda now already at 98% immunization levels, the health ministry is now moving in swiftly to start mass immunization of the swarming refugee population that is entering the country from all directions.

The current South Sudan conflict has seen an influx of refugees entering Uganda with the United Nations figures putting the number at 26,000.

Luzze however maintains that all the foreign populations from war tone nations are strictly being targeted to keep Uganda at the desire immunization levels with polio being the highly considered immunizable disease among other deadly immunisable diseases.

According to the ministry of health, efforts have already been put in place at especially the borders with South Sudan to avoid having Ugandan citizens’ contract  immunisable diseases especially children.

Luzze, said it has been a long journey for Uganda to reach these levels and still sights challenges that the country is facing to hit its target of 100% immunization levels.

He said the challenges mainly include; negative attitudes towards immunization by some parents, negative cultural and religious trends among others which need to be overcome for the country to fully embrace immunization and eradicate immunizable diseases which continue to kill and affect Uganda’s children.

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Children bellow five years in Uganda received extra doses of oral polio vaccine even if they had already been immunized and children aged six months to 59 months received measles vaccine irrespective of the previous immunization status and vitamin A supplementation.

The Mister for health Christine Androa says that it’s now a policy in Uganda for parents to bring their children for routine immunization against the 8 killer immunisable childhood diseases: Polio, Measles, Diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, tuberculosis, Hepatitis B, and haemophilus influenza type B.

The minister says that when all children under five years receive drops of polio vaccine at the same time, the circulation of the virus that causes polio is interrupted. He says that once immunization is properly conducted it will lead to eradication of polio in Uganda. According to the national immunization progamme, June and July rounds of polio immunization exercise would be conducted from house to house.

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