The Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Health Director, Dr. Kofi Badu Sunderland, has threatened to enforce public health laws against parents who fail to make available their children for polio immunization.
According to him, during the first polio vaccination campaign, they were unable to visit the various school in the metropolis to vaccinate the children since they were on vacation.
Additionally, some parents hesitated to make available their children to undergo immunization.
He, therefore, called on parents and teachers to present their children to be immunised to curtail danger to the entire population.
“After the immunization, we still found out that there are some children who were not immunized within the metropolis. The reason for non-immunization was that some parents refused their children to be immunized. Some also said their children were not ready at home,” he told Angel News.
“This time round I’m going to urge the health workers that if a mother refuses to immunise her child, they should identify the person and inform us and we will go and have a dialogue. If we have the dialogue and still the parents are resisting, then we will apply the public health law, because we will not allow those little ones to put danger to the entire population.”
He noted further the directorate is still battling with some of the children on religious grounds, adding, “and if we are supposed to apply the public health law such parents are supposed to be arrested.”
On the part of the Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipal Health Director, Mrs. Joyce Bagina, now that the schools are in session, children under 5 years are at the creche, daycare, and kindergarten will all be vaccinated by the health professionals who will visit the schools.
She stated that during the first polio vaccination exercise that took place between September 1 to 4, the Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipal Health Directorate was able to vaccinate over 42,000 children.
However, for the second phase which is slated to last from 6th to 9th October 2022, the Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipal Health Directorate is targeting over 44,000 children under 5 years to receive the dose.
The Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipal Health Director emphasized that no child should be left behind during the 2nd phase of the polio vaccination campaign.