Partners in Ukraine unite to protect children from vaccine-preventable diseases

Rotary International Ukraine and the nongovernmental organization Parents for Vaccination (PfV) took advantage of World Polio Day on 10 October 2016 to raise public awareness about the risk of polio in Ukraine and the need to protect all children through immunization. Several public events were organized in the capital city of Kiev, drawing large-scale public and media attention.

Tim Badikov, chairman of PfV, believes every child has a right to be protected from vaccine-preventable diseases. He and other parents who support this idea have united to advocate for strengthening immunization programmes in Ukraine.

Response to parental concerns about vaccines

PfV was established in 2015 in recognition of the urgent need to counter misinformation being spread by anti-vaccination groups, at a time when increasing immunization coverage was vital to stop a polio outbreak in the country. Since that time, nearly 100 parents have become active members, and more than 1000 have participated in PfV events and meetings.

“Our organization was established by parents and for parents with the primary goal of supporting those who want to vaccinate their children and to confront negative information about vaccination,” says Tim Badikov. “During the polio outbreak in Ukraine we were looking for credible sources of information about the vaccination. But at the time the voices of those who are against immunization were much louder than brief statements made by the experts.”

PfV has already organized more than 30 events for parents, where they can speak with invited pediatricians, immunologists and family doctors to get answers to any questions on vaccination or common myths. PfV’s most recent achievements are the development of an online map of vaccine availability in hospitals all over Ukraine and a collaboration agreement with the Ukrainian Academy of Paediatrics.

Active role of Rotary International

The establishment of PfV was initially supported by Rotary Ukraine, which has been working closely with WHO and other partners to stop the polio outbreak in the country and increase the population’s immunity against polio and other vaccine-preventable diseases.

Rotary International has been active in the fight against polio since 1985, and is one of the 5 partners of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, along with WHO, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), UNICEF and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, working with countries to eradicate polio worldwide.

Strengthening immunization programme in Ukraine

WHO is working in close collaboration with the Ministry of Health of Ukraine and partners, including the nongovernmental organization PfV, to enhance the routine immunization programme in the country. Technical guidance is provided especially for immunization programme strategy and multi-year planning, strengthening programme management, and training in vaccine safety for health care workers at the national and oblast levels.

Polio outbreak in Ukraine

The Government of Ukraine announced the detection of circulating poliovirus on 1 September 2015. With support from WHO, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and international partners, the Government initiated 3 rounds of an outbreak response vaccination campaign over the ensuing 6 months, aimed at reaching every child under 10 years of age with at least one dose of polio vaccine. Independent reviews of the outbreak response conducted in May and October 2016 concluded that spread of the virus had been interrupted, but several key actions were needed to mitigate the risk of future outbreaks. These include improved routine immunization coverage and disease surveillance.    

Public Health Emergency of International Concern

The WHO Emergency Committee on the international spread of poliovirus under the International Health Regulations met on 11 November 2016 to review the current global epidemiology of polioviruses. The Committee concluded that the international spread of poliovirus remains a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), and recommended the extension of the Temporary Recommendations for a further three months.

Ukraine is considered by the Committee to be one of the countries no longer infected by polio, but still vulnerable to the emergence and circulation of vaccine-derived poliovirus. Among other recommendations, the Committee urged these countries to strengthen routine immunization to boost population immunity.