As the World marks Immunization Week, Member of the Mayoral Committee for Health and Social Development in the City of Joburg, Dr Mpho Phalatse, calls on residents to visit their nearby clinics to get immunized to avoid health complications.
Residents of Johannesburg, including children, adolescents and adults are urged to access immunization services offered through the city’s 81 clinics to ensure that everyone is covered.
In addition, 13 of these clinics offer extended hours services ranging from 07:00 to 22:00 during the week, and from 07:00 to 13:30 on weekends and public holidays to ensure increased access.
The eighth African Vaccination Week kicked off on 23 April and will end on 30 April 2018 with the theme: “Vaccines work!”
The city’s clinics, through the Expanded Programme on Immunisation in South Africa (EPI-SA) offers vaccines to prevent death and reduce suffering from diseases of childhood, which can be prevented by the immunisation of children and women.
Phalatse said it was important that residents understand the importance of immunization.
Immunization prevents illness, disability and death from vaccine-preventable diseases, including: cervical cancer, diphtheria, hepatitis B, measles, mumps, pertussis (whooping cough), pneumonia, polio, rotavirus diarrhoea, rubella and tetanus.
Immunisation against these diseases remains the most cost effective Public Health intervention that is currently available. Health workers involved in immunisation are in a privileged position to ensure this protection.
To date, coverage of fully immunised children under 1 year is above the national target of 95% in the City of Johannesburg.
“The City of Johannesburg has made some headway in addressing barriers to immunization experienced by communities and healthcare workers. Through the extended service hours at 13 of our clinics, working mothers who would otherwise miss their children’s appointments can now comply with the Expanded Programme on Immunisation in South Africa by visiting our clinics after hours, on weekends as well as on public holidays,” said Phalatse.
The MMC said informal settlements with no existing clinic facilities will also be assisted through the rollout of mobile clinics in all seven Regions of the City. “This will ensure that all children in those settlements access this much needed preventive health intervention, preserving the lives not only of these children, but also of those who come into contact with them,” she said.
The City of Joburg will be promoting Africa Vaccination Week by targeting wards, hot-spots and hard to reach areas, particularly where immunisation coverage is low. Health promoters and nurses in the city’s seven regions are out and about this week with outreach activities focusing on health promotion, child screening, immunisation, deworming and treatment of minor ailments.
MMC Phalatse said it was still concerning that the immunization programme still faces serious challenges which undermine the exceptional progress that has been made thus far in the eradication of Small Pox and control of Measles and Polio, as well as hinder the efforts to achieve targeted levels of immunization coverage.
The challenges include lobby groups, such as some religious groups which are against immunisation; underutilization of immunisation services by the community and defaulters and working parents (especially mothers), as well as accessibility of immunisation services to sustain current rates of immunisation coverage.
Phalatse said though the city’s 2017 measles immunization campaign was met with resistance from some religious groups because of religiously impermissible ingredients in the vaccine, both the Jamaitul Ulama South Africa and the Muslim Judicial Council rallied behind government, providing leadership and guidance to their followers around the use of vaccines for the preservation of life.
“The city will continue to engage all special interest groups to jointly find ways around this sensitive matter. The health of our children is in our ability to put them first."
For media queries or interview opportunities, please contact:
Lesego Mathibela
Stakeholder Manager
Office of the MMC – Health and Social Development
Tel: (011) 4076725
Mobile: 061 497 8286
E-mail: LesegoMat@joburg.org.za
Or
Dominic Mahlangu
Strategic Advisor
Office of the MMC – Health and Social Development
Tel: (011) 407 6832
Mobile: 081 230 3299
Email: DominicM@joburg.org.za
