Khartoum Health Ministry Launches Campaign to Immunize Response to the Diphtheria Epidemic in Karri Local Government
Omdurman/The Citizen
The Ministry of Health in Khartoum State inaugurated today, Saturday, at the Abouda Health Center in Karri locality, the beginning of the diphtheria epidemic response campaign, which lasts for (6) days starting from today (22-27) of this November, with the support of the Federal Ministry of Health, in cooperation with UNICEF and the World Health Organization, and with the support of the Global Vaccine Alliance, and targets the age group of (5-20) years through (3) vaccinations, the first round started today and the second one a month after the end of the first and third rounds during (6) months for the same target group.
Dr. Hisham Abdullah, Director of the General Administration of Primary Health Care and representative of the Director General of the Ministry, announced that the campaign targets (390) thousand and (494) individuals, and is implemented through (87) fixed centers, (38) mobile clinics, and (380) clinics in Clinic 1 temporary, by (101) team leaders, and explained that diphtheria is bacterial and can be controlled through primary protection by immunization, calling on citizens in Karri locality to cooperate and mobilize the target group to receive the vaccine, to limit reaching the epidemic stage.
The representative of the Federal Ministry of Health, Mohamed Abu Al-Qasem, confirmed that the vaccine used in the vaccination, which is represented by the diphtheria and lethal disease vaccine, is safe and effective, noting that the campaign comes in response to the expanded immunization program to limit the spread of the epidemic to launch the campaign in (17) localities in the different states of Sudan, through three strategies in the first phase, which was launched today through the first dose, provided that the second round will take place a month after the end of the first, followed by the third round after (6) months.
Ihsan Mohamed from UNICEF stressed during her participation in the launching the campaign reflects the organization’s commitment to supporting and protecting children against childhood diseases in Khartoum State and all states in Sudan, and to coordinate through joint federal and state efforts to respond quickly and work to reduce the spread of the epidemic, indicating that diphtheria is dangerous.
Dr. Hassan Bashir, Director of the General Directorate of Health Promotion, appealed to families in Karri locality to respond to the vaccination campaign to protect the target age group from contracting the disease.