2.4 Million Dhaka Residents to Receive Oral Cholera Vaccine in One Week

About 2.4 million people in five areas of Dhaka city will receive oral cholera vaccine in one week starting Sunday, according to the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b).

The first dose of the cholera vaccine has been scheduled to be given from 8 am to 4 pm, reports UNB.

Health Minister Zahid Maleque on Sunday inaugurated the country's largest oral cholera vaccination campaign at the icddr,b in Mohakhali.

In Bangladesh, generally, there are two outbreaks of diarrhoea that take place during April-May and August-September.

The number of diarrhoeal patients in Dhaka from March-May this year was many times higher than in the past. More than half of these patients were from areas such as Jatrabari, Dakshin Khan, Sabujbagh, Mohammadpur and Mirpur.

During this time, the number of cholera patients rose to about 34% among all patients.

So, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) urged the Intersectoral Coordination Group (ICG) to provide vaccines for the "reactive cholera vaccination program".

In response, the ICG provided about 4.5 million doses of oral cholera vaccines.

The icddr,b is undertaking the cholera vaccination campaign with support from Dhaka North and South City Corporation and under the supervision of the DGHS.

The two-dose Euvichol-Plus Cholera vaccine produced by EuBiologics Co, South Korea, which is given at least 14 days apart, will be administered to those who are above one year of age.

This vaccine is prequalified by the World Health Organization and can be given to all except pregnant women and those who have received other vaccines within the last 14 days.

A target has been set to vaccinate about 5,00,000 residents of Jatrabari, 4,20,000 in Sabujbagh, 2,80,000 in Dakshin Khan, 7,80,000 in Mirpur and 4,00,000 in Mohammadpur.