Madagascar battles measles outbreak
Print Edition
Madagascar faces its largest measles epidemic in history, with cases soaring well beyond 115,000 and the number of deaths at 1,200.
Only 58 percent of people on Madagascar鈥檚 main island have been vaccinated against measles. Immunization rates need to be 90 percent to 95 percent or higher to prevent outbreaks.
On a recent day, the Iarintsena health center鈥檚 waiting room was full, with mothers sitting on the floor and others waiting outside in the overwhelming heat. Two volunteer nurses and a midwife tried to meet the demand.
Nifaliana Razaijafisoa had walked 15 kilometers with her 6-month-old baby.
鈥淗e has a fever,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 measles because there are these little pimples that have appeared on his face.鈥
It was quickly confirmed.
鈥淚鈥檓 so scared for him because in the village everyone says it kills babies,鈥 Razaijafisoa said.
This outbreak is complicated by the fact that nearly 50 percent of children in Madagascar are malnourished.
鈥淢alnutrition is the bed of measles,鈥 said Dr Dossou Vincent Sodjinou, a WHO epidemiologist.
Simply reaching a clinic for help can be a challenge.
Many people in Madagascar cannot afford to see a doctor or buy medicine, and health centers often are understaffed or have poorly qualified workers.
Late last month, WHO started a third mass vaccination campaign in Madagascar with the overall goal of reaching 7.2 million children aged 6 months to 9 years.
鈥淏ut immunization is not the only strategy for the response to this epidemic,鈥 said Sodjinou. 鈥淲e still need resources and social mobilization.鈥
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