DEPED, DOH LAUNCH SCHOOL-BASED VACCINATION CAMPAIGN

The DoH and DepEdon Monday launched Bakuna Eskwela to vaccinate school-age children to protect them from several diseases (Photo courtesy of Danny Pata/GMA News)

The Department of Health (DOH) in collaboration with the Department of Education (DepEd), launched its vaccination campaign “Bakuna Eskwela” a school-based information program (SBIP) and will be implemented across public schools nationwide.

The vaccination campaign will be rolled out in selected public schools in several provinces until November as part of government efforts to boost immunization rates nationwide and to protect school-age children from measles, rubella, tetanus, diphtheria and cervical cancer.

The SBIP has a total budget allocation of P853 million, and at least 3.8 million public school students enrolled in Grades 1 and 7 are aim to immunize with measles-rubella and tetanus- vaccines. About 973,930 female Grade 4 students in selected public schools would also be vaccinated with HPV jabs as protection against cervical cancer.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara said, "With vaccination, we can ensure our learners stay in school and don't miss valuable learning opportunities. As Edcom's studies show, some schools lost as much as 53 days of instruction in a single school year due to various health-related issues."

According to DepEd, Bakuna Eskwela is the revival of the school-based immunization program which was suspended because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Angara assured that the DepEd will conduct an intensified information campaign to reduce vaccine hesitancy among learners in the basic education sector.

Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa likewise said, “Our goal is to create a safe environment and ensure health and well-being of every Filipino child. This October and November, we will unite and campaign together with the Department of Education to save our children from these vaccine-preventable diseases.”

Data from the DOH showed that a total of 3,356 cases of measles and rubella with 11 fatalities were recorded from January 1 to September 14. It also recorded 215 cases of diphtheria with 25 deaths; 81 cases of neonatal tetanus with 44 deaths; and 7,897 women with cervical cancer.

Source: GMA Integrated News 

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