Give an account on measures taken and challenges faced in measles-rubella elimination. (200 words)
Refer – The Hindu
Enrich the answer from other sources, if the question demands.
IAS Parliament 2 years
KEY POINTS
Measures taken
· The Government decided to eliminate measles and rubella from India by 2015 and later on by 2020.
· The two arms of intervention are vaccination and surveillance.
· So, in 2017 efforts were made to create a very high level of vaccination-induced immunity against both diseases, by inoculating MR vaccine.
· Due to high registration and attendance a school-based vaccination programme was taken up.
· The ideal population-cum-administrative unit for efficiently implementing all activities towards MR elimination is the district.
· Every district has excellent infrastructure to manage the UIP. Task Force mechanism overseeing the UIP that is managed by the District Immunisation Officer.
· With this approach the whole country will reaches the finishing line when all 773 districts achieve success.
· Two doses of the MR vaccine covering at least 95% children below five years — the first dose between nine and 11 months and second dose ideally in the second year of life — will suffice. To cover immunity gaps after one dose of measles vaccine, a second dose was necessary.
· For epidemiological reasons rubella vaccination had to cover children up to 15 years.
Challenges faced -
· Due to a lack of information given to the public there was much anxiety —and even antipathy towards — in many places, about the programme, in the minds of parents and school authorities.
· The COVID-19 pandemic stole two years from the programme. So the MR elimination target was re-set to 2023.
· Clinical and laboratory surveillance and vaccination have to be sustained, as either virus, especially measles virus, could be imported from outside; that should be immediately detected and interrupted.
· The rubella virus is a slower transmitter and the risk of rubella is extended from childhood through adolescence into the reproductive age range. In most individuals, rubella infection is either without symptoms.
