BHADRAPUR: More than 500,000 people in Jhapa district are set to receive vaccines against Japanese encephalitis (JE) as part of a district-wide vaccination campaign.
According to the Public Health Office, Jhapa, the campaign will run from September 21 to October 1 across all 15 local levels of the district, targeting people aged 30 and above.
Public Health Office Chief Brij Kumar Das said the vaccines required for the campaign have already arrived in the district. Preparations, including coordination with local governments, training health workers and establishing vaccination centers, have been completed.
“The vaccination campaign is being conducted with heightened vigilance as the infection and mortality rates from JE are increasing,” Das said. He added that preparations have been made in coordination with local governments and health institutions to ensure that no one in the target group is left out.
The office said 570,000 doses of the vaccine have been received for the campaign. Vaccination services will be provided through 900 centers across 131 wards of the district.
Around 500 health workers, 611 female community health volunteers and more than 3,000 other volunteers will be mobilized for the campaign.
According to Das, Jhapa has recorded a higher rate of JE infection than many other districts in the country, prompting authorities to launch the vaccination campaign there. So far, 13 people in Jhapa have been confirmed to have contracted JE, seven of whom have died.
Comment