ADDITIONAL DIPHTHERIA VACCINES NEEDED FOR ORI PROGRAM

By Andi Abdussalam

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.

IMMUNIZATION LAUNCHED TO PREVENT SPREAD OF DIPHTHERIA

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Dec 12 (Antara) - The Ministry of Health is launching a simultaneous immunization program or "outbreak response immunization (ORI)" in three provinces in response to the emergence of diphtheria cases in some regions.         The immunization program was carried out in three provinces of Jakarta, West Java, and Banten. The program was started on Monday (Dec 11)     Director of Surveillance and Quarantine of the Ministry of Health, Jane Soepardi, said that the effort was taken to prevent the spread of diphtheria. The selection of the three provinces is based on the consideration that the cases of diphtheria and population density in these three provinces are quite high.         Besides immunization in schools, residents can get free vaccinations through puskesmas public healthcare centers. There are a number of cases of diphtheria reported in several other regions, such as in Aceh, Central Java, and East Java.          The Health Service of Aceh has recorded a total of 93 cases of diphtheria in the province since early this year.          "Up to Dec 2017, we have recorded 93 cases of diphtheria in Aceh, of which four of them died. The four who died were from the districts of East Aceh, North Aceh, Pidie Jaya, and Bireuen," Head of Disease Prevention and Control Affairs of Aceh¿s Health Service, Abdul Fatah, stated in Aceh on Tuesday.         Two other patients were found in Batang district, Central Java, and three in Situbondo District in East Java.