Plateau not polio endemic, says health commissioner
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By Blessing Emmanuel
Jos, Sept. 28, 2016 (NAN) The Plateau Commissioner for Health, Dr Kunden Deyin said on Wednesday that contrary to insinuations and negative reports, the state was not polio endemic.
He said this in Jos, while receiving a donation of 46 Direct Drive Solar Refrigerators from the European Union (EU), to the Plateau Government for the effective storage of vaccines.
The commissioner said at the ceremony that the state had not recorded any case of polio since 2009, and that the ministry was up and doing.
He said the gesture from the EU would go a long way in ensuring that potent vaccines were administered effectively to toddlers and children in the state.
“If vaccines do not get to the child in its potent stage, it is as good as if the vaccine are not administered as the aim of such immunisation is defeated because the vaccine had lost its efficacy.
“This donation will ensure that each of the 17 Local Government Area on the Plateau, have a proper and effective way of preserving the vaccines.
“Since the refrigerators are powered by solar, there will be no gap at all in the administration of potent vaccines”, he said.
He assured that the donation would be used for its sole purpose which is to ensure that vaccines were kept in potent state and that such vaccines were administered in potent stage too.
According to him, Plateau is on its toes to ensure that there is no case of such in the State, by ensuring that children were immunised with the oral-polio vaccine.
Dr Solomon Thliza, the Plateau Technical Assistant of EU Support to Immunisation Governance in Nigeria (EU-SIGN Project) , had while presenting the items to the government, said the EU was committed to ensuring that every child got immunised with potent vaccines.
He said the project had made it a point of duty to provide infrastructure such as cold rooms and freezers, which Plateau was a beneficiary.
He explained that vaccines needed to be kept or stored in a cold temperature of plus one to plus eight for it to maintain its potency.
“Many times, vaccines that have lost potency are administered to infants because such vaccines are not well stored and the aim of giving such vaccines is defeated,” he said,
He explained that the refrigerators, which were solar driven, would go a long way in bridging the gaps of inadequate power supply for areas that lack electricity.
In addition to storage of vaccines, he said the freezers would be used to freeze ice packs, which would be kept in the coolers that are used to convey the vaccines for administration.
He further explained that the ice packs would help ensure that the vaccines were potent for 16- hours in the coolers when outside the cold room or refrigerators. (NAN)
(Edited by Emmanuel Nwoye/Julius Enehikhuere)