Jakarta, Dec 28 (Antara) - The Jakarta regional government will allocate additional funds for the procurement of diphtheria vaccines to immunize over 1.2 million residents, not only children under five years of age but also adults over 19 years old.
"The stock of diphtheria vaccines should be increased. I think an additional stock of over 30 percent is needed since we have to also take precautionary measures by immunizing those over 19 years of age. I hope this program would be implemented smoothly," Vice Governor Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno noted in Jakarta on Wednesday.
The 1.2-million stock of diphtheria vaccines was provided by the Ministry of Health, but it was solely for immunizing recipients in the age group of 0-19 years.
The Ministry of Health is launching a simultaneous immunization program, or "outbreak response immunization (ORI)," in the three provinces of West Java, Banten, and Jakarta to counter the emergence of diphtheria cases in some regions. The program was started on December 11, 2017.
In Jakarta, the number of patients having contracted the diphtheria virus has reached 57, and so far, two have died. According to the Indonesian Medical Association, over 600 patients were hospitalized, with 40 deaths reported across the country so far.
Cases in Jakarta indicated that people over 19 years of age also contracted the disease, and the Jakarta regional government is responsive and ready to provide the budget for additional vaccines.
"We are looking at cases of patients over 19 years of age. Hence, we have to ensure that the regional government prepares a budget for the procurement of vaccines for the immunization program," the vice governor explained.
The Jakarta regional government has ordered the Health Service office to calculate the amount of additional budget. Adequate funding has already been allocated from the Jakarta Regional Budget for the first phase of the program.
The problem being faced is that the spread of diphtheria is fast and difficult to detect. Thus, the breakthrough to counter this disease is to conduct immunizations, such as the ORI and the procurement of diphtheria vaccines.
"We are trying to make breakthroughs, and we have sought an approval from the Jakarta Regional Legislative Assembly for the budget for procuring the vaccines," Uno remarked.
The ORI aims to immunize 1,238,283 residents of North and West Jakarta. ORI is being conducted across all kindergartens, early childhood centers, primary and junior high schools, and universities. It is also being carried out in health facilities, hospitals, and other locations, such as daycare facilities, apartments, and flats.
Diphtheria is particularly dangerous if the patient receives medical treatment two to three days after having contracted the disease. If a patient is suffering from cough for more than two weeks, it is possible that he or she is at high risk, he remarked.
In response to the outbreak of diphtheria, the Indonesian Medical Association's data indicated that diphtheria cases were found in 142 districts in 28 provinces across Indonesia, with over 600 patients being hospitalized and 40 deaths.
According to Aman Bhakti Pulungan, chairman of the Indonesian Pediatrician Association (IDAI), until now, the coverage of ORI, which was started on Dec 11, is still far below expectations.
"In West Java, it has not reached 20 percent," Pulungan stated.
In addition, vacations for school children have begun from today, so the implementation of ORI is not being carried out in schools anymore.
The IDAI chief opined that if the ORI program is only conducted at public health care centers, it would be less effective since it depends on the awareness of the community members who bring their children to the healthcare facility.
Pulungan expressed hope that President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) would take proactive steps to overcome the diphtheria outbreak through the launch of the ORI program.
"The ORI must be initiated by the head of state. If the head of state started it himself, the program can be completed in six months," Pulungan stated at a press conference in Jakarta on Monday (Dec 18).
Pulungan cited the Measles Rubella (MR) immunization as an example, where the president interfered in the handling of fake vaccine, which was completed quickly, following his instruction.
President Jokowi, accompanied by Vice President Jusuf Kalla, chaired a limited-cabinet meeting at the Bogor Presidential Palace on Wednesday (Dec 27) to discuss the outbreak of diphtheria in the country.
The closed-door meeting was attended by several ministers of the Working Cabinet, including Coordinating Minister for Political Affairs Wiranto, Health Minister Nila F. Moeloek, Minister of Religious Affairs Lukman Hakim Syaifuddin, and Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung.
"The president ordered us to continue what we had done earlier, which is implementing the ORI program and promoting cleanliness," Minister Moelok stated following the meeting.
Moeloek admitted that currently, the ORI is focusing on the three provinces of Jakarta, West Java, and Banten but will be expanded to other provinces as well.
The minister revealed that this step was being taken based on the existing logistics, and the government had ordered Bio Farma to continue to produce diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus vaccines.
"The vaccine is supplied by Bio Farma, and we have urged them to continue to make it sustainable. Hence, from December, the program will be extended to other affected provinces as well," she explained.
In the meantime, state-owned vaccine producer PT Bio Farma has postponed the exports of diphtheria vaccine to meet the local demand following the outbreak of the disease at home.
Nurlaela Arief, a spokesperson of Bio Farma, noted that the company had reallocated its export supply to the domestic market.
"We have reallocated the export supply to the domestic market. We have given priority to meet the local demand," Nurlaela remarked.
The vaccines are Pentabio (Dpt Hb-Hib), DT, and Td.
The company has also met the demand of the Health Ministry to increase its vaccine supply for the ORI program.
Bio Farma has increased its vaccine production by 137 thousand vials comprising 35 thousands vials of DT vaccine and 102 thousand vials of Td vaccine to meet the demand for the ORI program in December. The supply of the Dpt Hb-Hib vaccine has been adequate.
The vaccine demand for the ORI program in December has reached 2.295 million vials, comprising 135 thousand vials of the DT vaccine, 760 thousand vials of the Td vaccine, and 1.4 million vials of the Dpt Hb-Hib vaccine.
In 2018, Bio Farma will provide 12.7 million vials of vaccines, comprising 1.2 million vials of DT vaccine, seven million vials of Td vaccine, and 4.5 million vials of Dpt Hb-Hib vaccine for the ORI program in January and July. The supply will be increased to meet the demand for the vaccine for routine immunization of toddlers and school goers.***4***
(A014/INE)EDITED BY INE(T.A014/A/BESSR/A. Abdussalam) 28-12-2017 19:50: |
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