Obiano flags off 4 day immunization in Umunachi this morning, Gives Hospitals N17.5 Million grants

www.odogwublog.com reports that Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra state will this morning flag off the four-day Immunization exercise at Umunachi Health Center in
Dunukofia Local Government Area.
Commissioner for Health, Dr. Josephat Akabuike said the Anambra State Government is targeting 2.7 million children less than five years and women of child bearing age, for the immunization during this year’s second phase of National Immunization Plus Days taking off today in all parts of the state.
Akabuike while briefing journalists at his office in Awka, said the exercise would include house-to-house visits by health officials as well as immunization which would take place in all health centers and designated sites in all the 177 communities in the state, including churches, mosques, motor parks and markets.
He noted that the exercise would entail administration of two drops of potent oral polio vaccine and scaling up delivery of the routine immunization antigens and other child survival interventions.
The commissioner also said that governor Obiano had already given each of the 37 General Hospitals in the state N500,000 for drug revolving programme with the sole aim of ensuring adequate and uninterrupted drug supply in all parts of the state.
He added that there were plans to increase the allocation to N1 million to each of the hospitals.
Akabuike said: “The programme would entail building comprehensive drug chains in the hospitals to discourage the out-of-stock syndrome in all the health facilities in the state.
“As part of efforts to ensure that health care services reached all parts of the state unhindered, the governor has signed into law the Primary Healthcare Agency bill and set up a board for the agency for effective operation.
“Government has also acquired six boat ambulances and 17 flying boats to enhance the operations of primary health care delivery in the riverine areas of the state.”
From the breakdown made available to Journalists, the state is targeting 1.06 million children of zero -59 months and 211,993 children less than one year for the exercise.
Also, 1.17 million women of child bearing age and 264,991 pregnant women are to benefit from the exercise.
The commissioner further called on parents to use the opportunity of the immunization days to ensure that their children were immunized, warning against going to chemist shops to immunize children because the potency of drugs used in those chemists could not be guaranteed.