Regional Technical Group-Expanded Programme on Immunisation (RTG-EPI), Southwest Regional Delegation of Public Health, Cameroon.
Department for Disease Control, Epidemics and Pandemics, Ministry of Public Health, Cameroon.
Vaccine. 2018 Nov 12;36(46):6961-6967. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2018.10.004. Epub 2018 Oct 9.
Supplementary immunisation activities (SIAs) play a central role in polio eradication efforts. Armed conflicts resulting in insecurity negatively affect SIAs. In the Southwest region of Cameroon, armed conflicts persisted in 2018. We present our experiences of conducting a polio SIA in an insecure region.
The SIA took place from the 2nd to 4th of March 2018 and targeted 307,920 children aged 0-59 months. Bivalent polio vaccine was used. Before the SIA, extensive planning was done under the leadership of a Central Technical Group. Planning included security assessment, advocacy and social mobilisation.
Only 4 of the 18 health districts (HDs) of the Southwest region were considered safe. Regardless, vaccination teams worked in all HDs. The SIA achieved a coverage of 89.9%. Town criers and social mobilisers were the main sources of information about the SIA. Most (76%) children were vaccinated using the door to door strategy. There was no case of vaccine refusal.
Community members were very receptive of the SIA and this may be due to the communication that was adopted. Strong dedication by vaccination teams, community members' understanding and acceptance of polio SIAs are all key factors to the eradication of polio in conflict zones.
补充免疫活动（SIAs）在消灭脊灰炎工作中发挥着核心作用。不安全的局势会因武装冲突而恶化，从而对 SIAs 产生负面影响。在喀麦隆西南部地区，武装冲突在 2018 年持续存在。我们在此介绍在不安全地区开展脊灰炎 SIA 的经验。
SIA 于 2018 年 3 月 2 日至 4 日进行，目标人群为 307,920 名 0-59 个月龄儿童。使用二价脊灰炎疫苗。在 SIA 之前，中央技术小组领导下进行了广泛的规划。规划包括安全评估、宣传和社会动员。
西南部地区的 18 个卫生区（HDs）中，仅有 4 个被认为是安全的。尽管如此，疫苗接种队仍在所有 HDs 中开展工作。SIA 的覆盖率达到 89.9%。城镇传信员和社会动员者是 SIA 信息的主要来源。大多数（76%）儿童通过上门接种的方式接种疫苗。没有出现疫苗拒绝的情况。
社区成员对 SIA 非常接受，这可能是由于采用的沟通方式。疫苗接种队的坚定奉献精神、社区成员对脊灰炎 SIAs 的理解和接受，都是在冲突地区消灭脊灰炎的关键因素。
