The Second round of the Mother and Child, Health and Nutrition Action week will run from the 22nd to the 24th November 2024.
Children aged Six months to 59 months will be administered Vitamin A which helps to boost the immunity in children, contributes to the healthy growth of children and adds greatly in reducing the severity, occurrence, duration and complications of illnesses such as measles, chickenpox, diarrhea amongst others.
Asongwe Ignatius Forsuh, Focal point for Nutrition, North West, opines that this intervention is very necessary for healthy growth in children.
"In May, about six months ago, we carried out the same intervention wherein we supplemented the children with vitamin A, dewormed them and of course, educated the community on adequate water, hygiene and sanitation. This time around we are going to be supplementing the children in vitamin A and two targets are involved here. Children from 6 months to 11 months, they are going to receive the vitamin A which is dosed in 100,000 international units.They will receive one capsule and the second target would be children from 12 months to 59 months and they will all receive the vitamin A, which is dose in 200,000 international units. They will equally receive one capsule." Asongwe Ignatius said.
While the Vitamin A also reduces the risk of developing blindness, pregnant women will be administered the preventive intermittent treatment (IPT).
This protects the mother and her unborn child from malaria, reduces the risk of having low birth weight babies, reduces the rate of miscarriages and preterm birth. Asongwe Ignatius places this into context.
"In collaboration with the National Programme for the Fight Against Malaria, we are also going to be doing distribution of sulphur doxing parametamine for the preventive intermittent treatment for malaria in pregnancy.This is going to be exclusively done in health facilities Nationwide. The social mobilizers that will be moving in the community door to door will censor the number of pregnant women that are eligible for this treatment and we will refer them to health facilities for adequate care and treatment.
"IPT is one of the interventions that is done to ensure that the woman who is pregnant does not face the challenges of miscarriages because of malaria, that the woman does not have the risk of low birth weight, that the woman does not have the risk of anaemia.
"Especially, you know, anaemia is loss of blood or deficiency in blood and, of course, the risk of premature delivery." Asongwe said.
While the Vitamin A will be administered from door-to-door, the IPT will be administered only in specialized health districts across the country.
By Ndi Tsembom Elvis
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