Pneumonia and Diarrhea has been recorded by the Ministry of Health to be the leading cause of death for children in SANMOA province last year. Pneumonia and Diarrhea has been recorded by the Ministry of Health to be the leading cause of death for children
This was annunced by Pierrick Lesines, the keynote speaker at the recent launch of the two vaccines – Rotavirus (Rota) and Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) in SANMA.
Lesines said with this challenging situation, it is a priority goal for the Vanuatu government to protect children.
“It is our hope that the introduced vaccines will reduce the number of deaths among children in SANMA province and throughout Vanuatu,” the senior government representative said.
PCV is taken through injection to prevent pneumonia and it can also prevent babies from other ear and throat infections. The bacteria that causes pneumococcal infections spread to person-to-person contact.
Rota causes severe diarrhea and vomiting in infants and young children, which means they will be hospitalised if they are dehydrated.
The Rota vaccine is administered by putting drops in an infant’s mouth.
The third vaccine introduced during the launch is the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine, which protects against HPV strains responsible for over 50% of cervical cancers.