Communication workshop held in response to immunisation week

Illustrative image (Source: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – A
was held in Hanoi on June 12 in response to the .

Director of the National Institute of Hygiene
and Epidemiology (NIHE) Dang Duc Anh said the week is carried out this month
with a view to increasing the effective implementation of the national expanded
vaccination against infectious diseases.

This is a practical activity to raise public
awareness of the importance of vaccination and call for the involvement and
investment of authorities at levels and domestic and foreign organisations, he
added.

According to the NIHE, the coverage of immunisation
in the first three months of 2018 was on progress. Specifically, the rate of
infants receiving hepatitis B vaccines within the first 24 hours after birth was
16.9 percent, higher than the same period last year (16.2 percent).

The number of whooping cough cases in
January-March was reduced in comparison to the same period in 2017. No
diphtheria cases were reported in the reviewed period (five cases recorded in
the first quarter of 2017).

Particularly, in February 2018, the
measles-rubella vaccine produced by Vietnam was utilised for children in Nam
Dinh, Khanh Hoa, Dak Nong and Ba Ria-Vung Tau provinces.

As a result, 7,787 children aged 18-24 months received
vaccination and no serious reaction cases were recorded after that.

The national vaccination information management
system has been operated nationwide with more than 11,000 vaccination sites at
medical stations in communes and wards.

Training courses for vaccination workers were
held.

The immunisation week was initiated by the World
Health Organisation in 2011. 

At present, 180 countries and territories have joined
this event to protect the public health.-VNA