ILOILO CITY — The Department of Health (DOH) has assured that vaccines given in schools are safe and effective as it embarks on its school-based immunization (SBI) this August.
Dr. Mary Jane Roches G. Juanico, DOH Child Health team leader in Western Visayas, said this month, they are providing three vaccines in schools — the measles-containing vaccine (MR, MMR); Tetanus diphtheria (Td) vaccine; and human papillomavirus vaccine (HPV anti-cervical cancer).
“With our school-based immunization, we want to increase herd immunity,” said Juanico in an interview on Monday.
She said a community with a high herd immunity can protect people in their group, who have not availed of the immunization.
The DOH targets 123,771 Grade 1 students and 155,314 Grade 7 students for the measles vaccine and tetanus- diphtheria vaccine, respectively, and 78,981 Grade 4 female students for the anti-cervical cancer vaccine.
The anti-cervical cancer vaccine is given only to Grade 4 female students from Iloilo, Negros Occidental and Antique, she added.
Juanico said before being immunized, students should present their signed consent, been screened for contraindications, and children should not have a vaccine on an empty stomach.
“Vaccines provided in schools are free,” she added.
As of Monday, some 8,000 Grade 7 and 9,500 Grade 1 children were provided with the vaccines.
Juanico noted that there were parents who still refused to give consent to their children’s immunization because of the “scare (created by the) previous vaccines (against) dengue.”
“Rest assured that these vaccines are safe,” she said, expressing hope that parents would be able to understand the health education provided to them. (Perla Lena/PNA)
