On 24 October, World Polio Day, WHO and the health authorities of Ukraine conducted a joint field mission to the Zakarpattia region. The aim of the mission was to raise awareness among the public of the importance of continuing to vaccinate against polio and other vaccine-preventable diseases, despite the difficulties caused by the ongoing war in the country.
Every year on 24 October, the global community marks World Polio Day, using the opportunity to highlight global efforts towards achieving a polio-free world, to honour the contributions of frontline workers in the fight to eradicate polio, and to raise awareness of the importance of polio vaccination to protect every child from this crippling incurable disease.
Field mission to promote vaccination
The Zakarpattia region was chosen for the mission due to its low vaccination coverage and because it is where a 26-month-old boy with acute flaccid paralysis tested positive for circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) in 2021. The region also experienced a polio outbreak in 2015.
The mission team first visited the representatives of Zakarpattia regional administration in Uzhhorod to discuss the challenges of continued polio response complicated by the war. In Mukachevo, the team visited a Regional Infectious Disease Hospital for Children, where they met with health-care workers and discussed the important role such hospitals play in poliovirus surveillance and promoting vaccination. This role includes detecting and assessing suspected polio cases and reporting them to the epidemiologist, who supports the quick investigation of the case and timely stool collection for laboratory analysis.
The second visit was to the local Roma community in Mukachevo. This visit focused on discussing the importance of vaccination to prevent polio with community members. This visit also included a mobile vaccination team, who provided the opportunity for eligible children to be vaccinated.