The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) volunteers and staff are all geared up for the massive oral polio vaccination on October 14-27, 2019 in NCR and Mindanao areas (Davao del Sur, Davao City, and Lanao del Sur).

PRC will mobilize 550 trained volunteers and staff in the mass immunization. The group will be divided into four (4) men teams composed of a Leader, Vaccinator, Recorder and a Health Educator/Hygiene Promoter.

“Our target number for the children to be vaccinated is 30,000. PRC wants your children to be safe. Vaccines will keep away your children from diseases. It is the most effective way to prevent polio. Together, we can stop the spread of polio”, said PRC Chairman and CEO Richard Gordon.

Support items for the mass vaccination activity like dossarts, masks, gloves, alcohol, and vaccine carriers were already distributed to all PRC chapters in NCR and the selected Mindanao areas. A Technical Training on Polio and Response Planning Workshop was also held recently as one of the preparations for the “Sabayang Patak Kontra Polio”.

PRC has a master list of the children who will receive the vaccination. Once vaccinated, a record will be made to make sure that no child will miss the two (2) remaining doses of Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV). These are planned to be administered between November, 2019 to January of next year.

Parents will also be briefed about the importance of adhering to all government required child vaccinations. Red Cross volunteers and staff will also ensure the parents understand the importance of oral polio vaccine. They will also be handed information education and communication materials explaining the polio outbreak and its implications and a general knowledge of vaccination.

The synchronized oral polio vaccine is in partnership with the Department of Health (DOH) and with support from the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Cross Crescent Societies (IFRC) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).