A ceremony was held on April 24 in northern Bac Giang province tokick-start the Immunisation Week 2015 in Vietnam. Event participantsincluded Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, Minister of Health Nguyen ThiKim Tien and representatives from ministries, sectors and localities.
The event, co-hosted by the Ministry of Health andlocal authorities, is part of promotion activities to increase awarenessof the importance of immunisations in protecting community health.
It also aims to mobilise the active participation of authorities atall levels, international and domestic organisations and the communityin national vaccination campaigns to protect vulnerable children andprevent and control vaccine-preventable diseases from spreading widely.
Addressing the ceremony, Minister Tien highlightedthe significance of vaccines in controlling infectious diseases,minimising mortality rates and protecting human health over the past twodecades.
More than 30 communicable diseases can beprevented by vaccinations, she said, stressing the importance ofvaccines in preventing the reoccurrence of these diseases in Vietnam.
Meanwhile, Deputy PM Dam attached the significance tothe contribution of the Vaccination Week programme to health protection.
He also called on the community to be aware of theimportance of vaccines in child health, as well as urged relevant bodiesto work with the health sector to ensure effective implementation ofthe national expanded immunisation programmes.
Arepresentative from the United Nations Children’s Fund suggested Vietnamintegrate its vaccination programmes with other healthcare services tomitigate missing-out possibility.
In addition todeveloping a system to provide vaccination services and build capacityfor staff, the country should also expand publicity campaigns to raiseawareness of the importance of immunisations and build trust in thecommunity regarding vaccination.
Participantsattended a number of campaigns and witnessed a vaccine injection heldimmediately after the ceremony at the healthcare centre in Song Maicommune.
The Immunisation Week 2015 is launched by the WorldHealth Organisation (WHO) in the West Pacific Ocean Region from April 24to 30 to inspire global efforts to protect community health throughtimely and comprehensive vaccinations.
Hundreds ofmillions of children across the country have received free basicvaccines through large-scale national free vaccine programmes over thepast 30 years.
Vietnam has remained poliomyelitis-and new borne tetanus-free since 2000 and 2005, respectively, and keptother infectious diseases under control, minimising mortality rates fromdiphtheria, pertussis, tetanus and measles.
It has undertaken drastic measures to eliminate measles with a nationwide programme covering 20 million children.
WHO experts recently announced that the Vietnamese vaccine safetysurveillance programme meets WHO requirements, evidence of the qualityof domestic vaccines and contributing to realising global goals toeliminate poliomyelitis by 2018, measles by 2020 and bring the hepatitisB-infection rate in children-under-five to below one percent in theWest Pacific Ocean Region by 2017.-VNA
