“Two of my family members are languishing as beggars in the streets of Freetown as a result of deformity due to polio,” tells Yabom Saffie, a Sierra Leonean mother whose children have just been immunized against polio.
Sierra Leone is one of 19 countries to take part in a campaign aiming to stop polio in Africa. Altogether 85 million children across West and Central Africa will receive oral polio vaccine during the campaign that kicked off March 6 and continues in April.
Red Cross Red Crescent and other volunteers along with health workers administer polio drops at household doorsteps travelling by foot or bicycles, in cars and boats often in difficult conditions. Each vaccination team is equipped with special cool bags to ensure that the vaccine remains below the required 8 degrees C.
“I feel recognized and motivated to serve as a volunteer of the Red Cross anytime I am called on to save lives, particularly children”, explains Michael Fofana, one of 500 Sierra Leone Red Cross volunteers enrolled for the campaign.
Origins of the Outbreak
The current polio outbreak originates in northern Nigeria and has been spreading in West Africa since the second half of 2008. A previous round of campaigns last year didn’t stop the outbreak completely, as enough children were not vaccinated.
“This year, new approaches are being adopted. A special effort is made to re-deploy experienced staff and train vaccinators to support the campaigns, reach remote areas and implement independent monitoring to ensure children have been reached. There is also strong support from African governments to the intervention,” explains Dr. Aissa Fall, health Manager for Sahel countries in the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).
A new commitment of polio immunisation efforts in Nigeria has already seen numbers of polio collapse. In 2008, there were almost 800 cases of polio in Nigeria. So far in 2010, there has been one. At the same time last year, 30 were notified. Nigeria is the only polio endemic country in Africa.
The polio outbreak is still active in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad and Mali and has continued to spread west to Guinea, Liberia, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Mauritania. In each of these countries polio cases have been registered during the last six months. In a significant cross-border operation, the countries where the outbreak has been stopped or where no infection is registered, are taking part in the campaign so children continue to be protected from the wild polio virus.
Combined efforts
The campaign is being organised by the Global Polio Eradication initiative, which is spearheaded by national governments, WHO, Rotary International, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and UNICEF. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is a key operational partner, especially at the community level, together with the Red Cross Red Crescent National Societies in the region.
“The polio outbreak in our country warrants that we all make a collective effort in ensuring that all children under five years are immunized. Mass campaigns such as these provide the opportunity of bringing skilled volunteers to our work and therefore having more impact in the lives of vulnerable people. It also helps us reach remote villages that are normally far away from health facilities,” says Raymond Alpha, assistant health coordinator of the Sierra Leone Red Cross.
Polio is a highly infectious disease which is caused by a virus transmitted through contaminated food, water and feces. It mainly affects children under five years of age, invading the nervous system, and can cause life-long paralysis in a matter of hours. There is no cure for polio, it can only be prevented. Two drops of oral polio vaccine, given multiple times, can protect a child for life.