BHUBANESWAR: Under fire for ranking low in NITI Aayog health index due to poor immunisation rate, the State Government has asked Chief District Medical and Public Health Officers (CDM&PHOs) to ensure at least 90 per cent coverage of Tetanus-diphtheria (Td) vaccine. Director of National Health Mission (NHM) Shalini Pandit said all adolescents aged 10 years and 16 years will be vaccinated with Td vaccine as per national immunisation schedule. School going adolescents of Class V and X can be vaccinated using the platform of school health programme, Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK) as well as by carrying out Td adolescents immunisation once in every year.
Tetanus Toxoid (TT) vaccine which was earlier given to 10 years and 16 years adolescents as well as pregnant women is now being replaced by Td vaccine under routine immunisation programme. The coverage of TT vaccination among the 10 years and 16 years adolescents in the State during 2018-19 was 55 per cent (pc) and 64 pc respectively.
Pandit has directed the CDM&PHOs to take appropriate measures to achieve more than 90 pc Td vaccination coverage among adolescents in the State.Districts have been asked to prepare the district-level micro plan, vaccine requirement, awareness campaigns and district-level supervision plan. Block and district level teams will be in readiness with vehicle to attend any Adverse Events Following Immunisation (AEFI) case.
As per the vaccination programme, female health workers will prepare children of all school and non-school going children in her area and develop session plan for both school and community. ASHA will help female health workers during community level vaccination. “All school sessions and community sessions would be conducted from September 1 to 15. The CDMOs have been asked to submit achievement report to the State office everyday,” Pandit added.
As per WHO lab-supported vaccine preventable diseases surveillance data, 77 per cent (1,244 of 1,616 cases) and 76 per cent (1,370 of 1,802 cases) of Diphtheria in 2017 and 2018 respectively occurred in the age group of 5 years and above. The occurrence of Diphtheria cases in the older age group is due to the fact that immunity to Diphtheria subsides following primary series of infant immunisation.