Kwara to immunise over 700,000 children against disease

Dr Abimbola Folorunsho, Director, Primary Healthcare and Disease Control in Kwara, said the agency would immunise 767, 200 children against measles in the state.

Folorunsho said this on Monday in Ilorin, capital of Kwara, at a sensitisation programme for newsmen ahead of the exercise scheduled to hold between Nov. 21 and Nov.25.

The director was represented by Mrs Falilat Sulaiman, Head of Department, Health Education, Kwara State Ministry of Health.

She urged parents and guardians to avail their children and wards of the opportunity to be immunized against the disease.

She said children between the ages of nine months and five years would be immunised during the exercise.

"The exercise will cover 767, 200 children in 193 wards of the 16 local government areas of the state and the vaccination will be done at both the fixed and temporary posts in all the wards.

"One dose of the vaccine is about 85 per cent effective at preventing measles and two doses are about 97 per cent effective’’, she said.

She maintained that the vaccination is safe, free and highly efficacious for the prevention of measles.

She, however, warned that measles could reduce a child’s ability to fight other diseases if not cured from him or her.

The director, however, advised parents not to express any fears in case some of their children should react to immunization.

According to her, such can be in form of body temperature, rashes, difficulty in breathing or swallowing, reddening of skin and swelling of eyes.

Folorunsho urged them to report severe cases they might notice to health workers or any nearest health facility.