Ministry of Health steps up pneumococcal vaccination for children amid wave of respiratory infections in China

The Ministry of Health (Minsa) urges parents to vaccinate children against pneumococcal vaccines to expand coverage of respiratory infections, especially now that a wave of atypical childhood pneumonia has emerged among China’s pediatric population.

“We have two pneumococcal vaccines available from the age of two for children with chronic illnesses such as whooping cough, influenza (four strains) and Covid-19, both in children and adults,” said the coordinator of the expansion programme. On Immunity (EPI), Itzel de Hewitt.

Panama is still maintaining epidemiological surveillance, but Hewitt called for three doses of the vaccine, which is scientifically proven to be protective among children.

The vaccine is given at two and four months of age, followed by a booster at one year of age. Those who do not, please go to the nearest health center and have it placed.

The Ministry of Health reports that out-of-school days at vaccination stations will be reactivated in the coming weeks to identify absent children and place primary doses of Covid-19, influenza and other vaccines in the national vaccination programme. The main shopping center of the metropolitan area of ​​San Miguelito and northern Panama.

Miss Hewitt explained that the following vaccinations cover the following populations: influenza 70%; chickenpox (1 to 4 years old) 83%; hepatitis A 86%; hepatitis B (newborns) 70%; measles, mumps 89% for rubella; 86% for papilloma vaccine; 75% for adolescents and 70.6% for pregnant women.