Campaign to administer 15 000measles vaccines in Lilongwe

The Lilongwe District Health Office (DHO) says it is set to administer 15 000 measles vaccinations on top of the 34 000 vaccines it has administered.

Speaking yesterday during a tour to appreciate how Malawi Red Cross Society (MRCS) volunteers around Area 36 are supporting a Ministry of Health measles campaign in the district, Lilongwe DHO spokesperson Richard Mvula said the campaign is targeting children aged between six months and 15 years to protect them from measles.

He said: “From January last year, we have registered about 157 positive cases of measles and we want to contain further spread of the disease.”

According to Mvula, the outbreak has been worsened by people’s reluctance to get vaccinated.

He said: “This started during the Covid-19 vaccination period when some people would spread false stories that government wanted to vaccinate people with the Covid-19 virus. But following sensitisation campaigns, we are now having a good response because more children are turning up for the exercise.”

On his part, MRCS head of health services Dan Banda said they decided to join hands with the government to sensitise people to the importance of getting vaccinated because measles is preventable.

Red Cross has since deployed 143 volunteers to reach out to households in the district with messages about measles immunisation.

Said Banda: “We are doing this in reaction to the government’s alert about the measles outbreak, especially in the areas where we are engaging the community.”

One of the parents, Dorothy Jailosi from Chinguwo Village in the district, encouraged people to go for the vaccine, saying three of her children have ever suffered from measles and hence she will not hesitate to have them vaccinated.

Said Jailosi, “It was bad for one of my children who had a rash all over the body and was even bleeding from the eyes. I don’t want any of them to suffer from this disease again.” she said.