Bayelsa Health Commissioner Flags Off MPOX Vaccination For Health Care Workers

The Commissioner Ministry of Health, Bayelsa State, Professor Seiyefa Brisibe flagged off Monkey Pox(Mpox) vaccination for the State frontline health care workers as a preventive measure targeted at limiting the outbreaks and spread of the deadly disease(Mpox), yesterday.

Prof. Brisibe in his press release on the Mpox vaccination stated that, with the current Mpox disease outbreak in Nigeria, Bayelsa State accounts for a significant number of the confirmed cases and was chosen alongside six other States to implement the Mpox Vaccination for frontline healthcare workers as well as high risk populations.

The Mpox vaccination started with the frontline health care workers because they’ll be the people to administer the vaccine to others across board and on the great task ahead he started the vaccination process at the State Secretariat, Yenagoa.

He said the Mpox vaccine is a 2-dose vaccine, given a month apart to eligible persons. With the limited quantity of the vaccine available, the target for the vaccination has been limited to those most at risk contacting the disease. These include frontline health care workers, contacts of confirmed cases, high risk populations such as immunocompromised individuals.

The State received receipts of six hundred and thirty nine(639) dozes of vaccine, and the Ministry of Health through the Bayelsa State Primary Health Care Board is set to begin vaccination in the State as the surveillance system is also active to respond to cases of Adverse Events following Immunization with designated treatment centres on standby to attend to those cases.

The Commissioner encouraged frontline health care workers to adhere to preventive measures in the movement against the deadly disease and was joined on the flag-off by the, Permanent Secretary MOH, Dr. (Mrs.) Oluwatoyin Azebi, USAID Ambassador, Dr. Emeka Okechukwu, Dr. Saad Abdulmumin, Senior Administrative Officer USAID, State Coordinator USAID, Directors of the Ministry, Heads of the State WHO, and others.