Ministry of Health (MoH) Director General Dr Patrick Amoth has issued a fresh directive to parents following the conclusion of investigations into a past polio vaccination campaign.
While speaking to the press, Amoth noted that there was a misrepresentation of facts about the polio vaccine that was given to children.
Consequently, he has directed that, in the event of an outbreak, the polio vaccine be given to all children 0-59 months irrespective of their previous vaccination status.
“All Kenyan children under the age of 5 years are expected to be up to date with childhood vaccines where they receive Polio vaccine at birth, 6 weeks, 10 weeks, and 14 weeks as per the routine immunization schedule.
“In the event of an outbreak, the polio vaccine is given to all children 0-59 months irrespective of their previous vaccination status,” said Amoth.
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MoH Issues Findings of Concluded Investigations
At the same time, the DG said that all vaccines given by the Ministry of Health including the polio vaccine are safe and effective.
Further, he explained that the vaccine was given to children to protect them against polio, which is highly infectious and deadly.
Therefore, concerns from parents that the recent campaign was affecting children was a case of coincidence.
According to Amoth, the health issues may have occurred at the time of vaccination but were not caused by the administered vaccines.
“Concerns from parents in the recent polio campaign that took place from 2nd to 6th October in nine counties were investigated, by the Kenya National Vaccine Safety Advisory Committee, who found out that the reactions were coincidental and resolved over time.”
“Many times, health events occur during the time of vaccination by chance and are not caused by the vaccines itself,” he explained.
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About the Vaccination
Additionally, he noted that the vaccines issued by the ministry undergo very stringent safety and efficacy tests to ensure that they don’t cause any harm to the public.
“Polio is a highly infectious and debilitating vaccine-preventable disease with the potential to cause paralysis and even death in a matter of hours among young children who are not fully vaccinated.
“While there is no cure for polio, the disease can be prevented through receiving the oral polio vaccination, commonly shortened as OPV, and the inactivated polio vaccine (IPV).”
The Ministry of Health (MoH), in collaboration with County Governments and supported by the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF, and other immunization stakeholders, conducted a Polio Vaccination Campaign from Wednesday, October 2, to Sunday, October 6, 2024.
This campaign targeted nine high-risk counties: Busia, Bungoma, Trans Nzoia, West Pokot, Turkana, and Nairobi, and selected sub-counties in Kiambu, Machakos, and Kajiado.
The goal was to vaccinate 3,843,275 children, including 2,021,663 under 10 years and 1,821,612 under 5 years, with the polio vaccine.
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