The Telangana government on Wednesday launched pentavalent vaccine under the universal immunisation programme that will cover 6.3 lakh children yearly across the State. The vaccine will be administered free of cost in nearly 700 primary health centres, 5,100 sub-centres, teaching hospitals and hospitals under Telangana Vaidya Vidhan Parishad.
The vaccine efficiency will be maintained by storing them in 877 cold chain points equipped with 914 ice lined refrigerators and 990 deep freezers.
Close to 1,400 trained cold chain handlers will be in-charge of maintaining the cold chain system, said Health Department officials.
To be able to properly administer the pentavalent vaccine, which comes in a liquid form, close to 80,000 healthcare workers from the districts have been trained by experts from UNIICEF and WHO. The health officials have also planned to take up continuous high quality vaccine preventable disease surveillance to monitor the impact and changes in disease epidemiology over time.
The pentavalent vaccine is a combination of DPT (diphtheria, Pertussis/whooping cough and tetanus), Hepatitis B and Hib vaccines. DPT and Hepatitis B vaccines are already a part of the immunisation programme and now they will be replaced by the pentavalent vaccine. Each pentavalent vaccine consists of 0.5ml dose that will be given intramuscularly in the mid-thigh region through syringes.
A single vial of pentavalent consists of 10 doses and the government is spending Rs. 130 to procure a singe dose. “We urge parents to bring their infants to the nearest healthcare centre and make use of this facility. The vaccine will protect the children from five different ailments,” Health Minister C. Laxma Reddy said during the launch. The pentavalent vaccine will be administered at six weeks, 10 weeks and 14 weeks.
