Lao measles immunisation drive continues toward 1.6m target

 Laos is attempting to vaccinate 1.6 million children against measles and rubella in a campaign to eradicate the diseases from the country by 2017, the state-run Vientiane Times reported Monday.
Some 30,000 children in Xekong province received vaccinations on Saturday as part of the campaign which was launched in Vientiane on Nov. 12 by the country's President Choummaly Sayasone.
The two-week campaign aims to vaccinate all children in the country aged 9 months to 10 years.
Measles is a major cause of death among young children while rubella causes birth defects such as deafness and congenital heart disease.
Speaking in Xekong province, President of the Lao Front for National Construction, Dr. Phanduangchit Vongsa, said the government was playing an essential role in important work to reduce the incidence of measles and rubella.
"With this year's plan we are carrying out vaccinations from Nov. 17-30 ... involving more than 3,000 nurses and doctors throughout the country with technical and financial support from WHO and UNICEF targeting 1.6 million children," Vientiane Times quoted Phanduangchit as saying.
"However, we've been facing many difficulties as we've had limited healthcare in remote areas and lacked human resources and materials in this specific field."
UNICEF Representative to Laos Gao Hongwei said benefit could be greatest among ethnic groups that were hardest to reach.
"National, provincial, district and village leaders must join hands to reach every household particularly those of ethnic groups living in remote and hard to reach areas. By doing so, we are able to help ensure that children in the most vulnerable communities are equally protected from these debilitating and killer diseases," she said.
"By combining our efforts, I believe that reaching the challenging target of vaccinating nearly 1.6 million Lao children can be achieved and must be achieved because the children of Laos are entitled to protection from these diseases."
WHO Representative to Laos Dr. Juliet Fleischl said efforts to achieve the goal would have to be unstinting.
"Countries must maintain high immunity levels and strong disease surveillance to minimize the risk and consequences of any re-infection," she said.
"It is important that we achieve the measles elimination goal and accelerate rubella disease control through this nationwide campaign and also strengthen routine immunization activities in Laos."