The politics of polio eradication

In talking about polio I often get asked about the attitude of Moslems to eradicating polio.  Undoubtedly, in the recent past some militant Moslem clerics have denounced polio vaccinations as a western plot to undermine the Moslem religion.  This has obviously had a serious affect on Moslem communities and delayed uptake of the immunisation program, with the result that they have been over represented in polio statistics.  Have a look at the following link http://www.polioeradication.org/tabid/408/iid/126/Default.aspx  and you will see that the international Moslem leadership embraces the concept and practices of polio eradication.  This has undoubtedly been a key element in the success of the program over the last 2 years in the endemic countries of India, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria.  In pushing for polio eradication we can rest assured that that the program aligns with Rotary goals of cutting across all barriers whether they be geographical, political, religious or gender based

The Rotary Club of Dannevirke enjoyed hearing about our trip to the National Immunisation Days in India last January. They were well aware how easily the disease could spread back to NZ given our low immunization rates and used the current measles outbreak in Auckland as an example

The Home Front

The following link shows the potential for the spread of viral diseases in NZ.  In this case it was measles picked up on a plane ride back to NZ and then spread through the community due to inadequate immunisation rates.  Apparently there are an estimated 30,000 people under the age of 30 not immunised in Auckland alone.  Shows how easily polio could spread and why we need to eradicate it completely.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/5222511/Measles-outbreak-likely-to-spread

Keep Up to Date With Progress

As we work towards Zero there will ups and downs along the way.  Some areas we will make progress, as in India at the moment. others we will need to look carefully to determine if it is progress or not, as in Pakistan where the bright note is the numbers of WPV3.  Still others it may be regression, as in parts of Africa.  But you can stay up to date on a weekly basis with the following website

http://www.polioeradication.org/Dataandmonitoring/Poliothisweek.aspx

Not an Original Name

My use of the term Polio Zero is not original but I chose it because it represents a clear cut aim without tangling us up in doubtful timeframes or giving false hope.  I first came across it at the following link, really hope you will check it out

http://www.rotaryfirst100.org/foundation/newsletter/2011/2011.0715EB.110.pdf

Why Zero

By now we have seen the ads telling us we are "this close".  In my view we risk becoming complacent about the future if we accept this without thinking further about what it really means.  The only acceptable solution is to have zero cases of polio, hence the name.  Without Polio Zero we are committed to a costly holding program simply to stay where we are, or we relax our efforts and see everything done to date go to waste, including the realistic possibility of a recurrence in our own country.  My adoption of "Polio Zero" is as a reminder of the ultimate aim, something to plan for.