A polio lady health worker got hit by an assailant in Hyderabad and it speaks of the predispositions and misconceptions people here in Pakistan still hold about polio. Pakistan is one of just two countries, alongside Afghanistan, where polio stays endemic. Militants have several times attacked on immunization programs, murdering about 80 individuals since December 2012. The nation recorded more than 300 polio cases in 2014, its higher number since 1999. A large portion of the new cases were in north-west Pakistan, where militants regularly used to target wandering health teams. Health officials blamed the rise in cases on the several deadly attacks on polio teams which the country still witnesses. The global initiative to eradicate the disease began in 1988, the year Pakistan revealed around 2,000 cases. The nation was then managing polio as a feature of its supposed “Extended Program on Inoculation” (EPI), which was designed to eradicate six diverse immunization controllable illnesses. The number of cases fell to just 52 in 2015; generally in light of the fact that vaccination groups could achieve territories that were beforehand beyond reach on account of militancy. Authorities in charge of the nation’s polio annihilation endeavors feel things have changed now. More regions have become accessible to vaccination teams, and the government has been representing keenness for handling the infection. It is still quite unfortunate to see that nobody is willing at this time to put a time span on when Pakistan can be pronounced polio free. The issue with the polio team isn’t in the hands of government or isn’t merely controlled by the extremists rather public also seems to be doubtful about the polio vaccination due to number of speculations they hold regarding it. Parental refusals and infrequent mistreating of health workers began in 2005 and is still witnessed in the country. Though the number of polio cases reduced to 14 in 2016 but there is a strong need for the advocacy groups to play their role. For once progressing nicely, the legislature must exhibit its determination to make that last push to achieve the zero mark for polio annihilation -in light of the fact that our kids deserve sound lives.
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