World Polio Day

 
World Polio Day is an annual event held on 24th October to continue to raise awareness about this insidious disease and global efforts to eradicate it.   This year’s theme is “End Polio: Every child, Every Vaccine, Everywhere” which is a reminder of the need for ensuring all children across the world receive the polio vaccine.
World Polio Day is an annual event held on 24th October to continue to raise awareness about this insidious disease and global efforts to eradicate it.   This year’s theme is “End Polio: Every child, Every Vaccine, Everywhere” which is a reminder of the need for ensuring all children across the world receive the polio vaccine.
 
World Polio Day is a time for Rotary members, public health advocates and all who want a world free from polio to come together, recognise the progress that has been made in the fight to end polio and talk about what needs to be done in order to eradicate polio for good.
 
Polio (Poliomyelitis) is a highly infectious disease that most commonly affects children under the age of 5.  The virus is spread person to person, typically through contaminated water.  It can attack the nervous system and, in some instances, lead to paralysis. Although there is no cure, there is a safe and effective vaccine.  Rotary continues to work with our partners to distribute vaccines to children around the world as part of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI).   Partners in the GPEI include Rotary, UNICEF, the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organisation and The Gates Foundation.  By working together with these partners, governments and communities, over 2.5 billion children in 122 countries have been immunized.  However, to end polio, we must stop the transmission of wild poliovirus in the 2 countries that continue to report cases: Afghanistan and Pakistan.
 
The Challenge:  Worldwide Eradication
 
 
Cases have been reduced by 99.9% worldwide since 1988, but it is critical to continue efforts to eradicate the disease for good.  If polio is not fully eradicated, we could see a global resurgence of the disease with as many as 200,000 new cases each year over the next 10 years, all over the world.
 
In order to end polio, there is a need to increase disease detection / surveillance to ensure the virus is truly gone from every corner of the world.  Given that not all cases result in paralysis, the program’s extensive surveillance and laboratory network is essential in detecting new cases.
 
More information at www.endpolio.org
Diane Wilkinson
Foundation Chair