This was heard at a virtual meeting on measles prevention and control chaired by Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Tran Thi Dieu Thuy with people’s committees of 21 districts and Thu Duc City this morning.
During the meeting, Deputy Director Le Hong Nga of the Ho Chi Minh City Center for Disease Control announced that the city has experienced measles outbreaks in schools in the first week of the new academic year.
Specifically, Pham Huu Lau Primary School in Phu My Ward of District 7 recorded four measles cases. In Binh Chanh District, Huynh Van Banh Primary School in Vinh Loc A Commune had three cases, Lai Hung Cuong Primary School in Vinh Loc B Commune had two cases. Vo Thi Sau Primary School in Phu Thanh Ward of Tan Phu District had two cases and Nguyen Van Tay Primary School in Binh Chieu Ward of Thu Duc City had three cases.
The majority of the affected students had not received the complete dosage of the measles vaccine.
Accumulated from the beginning of the year until now, the city has had 581 cases of measles. In terms of scale, 16 out of 22 districts, including Thu Duc City, have seen new case increase compared to the average of the previous four weeks. Meanwhile, 172 out of 312 wards and communes have reported cases, and 48 wards and communes have seen an increase in the number of cases compared to the average of the previous 4 weeks.
Mrs. Le Hong Nga has alerted the public about the alarming surge of measles cases in Ho Chi Minh City. There is a rapid increase in both the number of cases and the rate of spread. Unfortunately, the vaccination rate for measles remains low. During the period from August 31 to September 9, the city has dispensed 28,229 vaccine doses. These include 19,821 doses for children aged 1-5, 5,260 doses for children aged 6-10, and 3,148 doses for high-risk children and healthcare workers.
Given the current situation, the Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee has instructed the People’s Committees of Binh Chanh District, Tan Phu District, District 7, and Thu Duc City to give priority to arranging vaccinations in wards and communes where schools have reported measles outbreaks.
Specifically, measles vaccinations will be administered to children in residential areas and schools within those wards and communes, with the urgent goal of increasing the measles vaccination rate to the highest possible level.
Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health Associate Professor Tang Chi Thuong stated that two private vaccination units, VNVC and FPT Long Chau, will participate with the city’s health sector in the measles vaccination campaign.
The Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health has requested districts to urgently review children aged 1-10 years and accelerate the vaccination process to control the outbreak. If localities need manpower support, the health sector will immediately provide assistance as many vaccination teams are ready. Additionally, it is requested that the four districts with outbreaks in schools promptly organize vaccination campaigns for children aged 5-10 years in primary schools.
Associate Professor Tang Chi Thuong is of the opinion that the sluggish vaccination progress is not caused by a lack of measles vaccines or manpower, but rather by organizational issues.
