- Venezuelan scientific societies have promoted the inclusion of several new and advanced vaccines in the public system, as well as calling to increase vaccine coverage in the country | Photo: Pixabay
The Venezuelan Society of Pediatrics and Childcare (SVPP) annually designs a scheme with recommendations on how vaccines should be administered during childhood and adolescence. These plans include vaccines that can be acquired for a fee or free of charge.
Free vaccines are those included in the Expanded Immunization Program (PAI), a public policy designed to distribute and apply vaccines through health centers dependent on the Ministry of Health and the Venezuelan Social Security Institute (IVSS).
Those vaccines that are outside the EPI arrive in Venezuela through private providers and are administered in pediatric consultations at clinics. The scheme proposed by the SVPP suggests that at least 22 diseases can be prevented with the proper administration of these vaccines.
What vaccines are included in the EPI?
Alejandro Rísquez, pediatrician and epidemiologist, explained in an interview for The Diary that the PAI varies over the years and, in most cases, the supply of vaccines in the public sector has been reduced. He highlighted that the State still has outstanding debts with the population regarding the incorporation of high priority vaccines within this plan.
The EPI includes 7 vaccines for the prevention of 11 diseases:
Tuberculosis: It is also known as BCG and is administered to newborn children in maternity hospitals or public health centers. The vaccine can be applied from 2 months if the baby did not have access to it as a newborn.
Hepatitis B: The Ministry of Health recommends that a single dose be administered to the newborn. If the baby does not have access to the vaccine at that time, the SVPP scheme suggests that it can be administered from two months of age.
Poliomyelitis: Three doses are given to babies at 2, 4 and 6 months of age. Boosters can then be administered at 18 months and 5 years. These vaccines are administered intramuscularly and orally.
Diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTP): It is also known as the triple bacterial vaccine and also protects against whooping cough infections. It is administered in three doses at 2, 4 and 6 months. Likewise, reinforcements are needed at 18 months and between 3 and 6 years.
Haemophilus influenzae type b: It is administered in three doses at 2, 4 and 6 months. Boosters can be applied around 18 months. In addition, children who have not started the scheme can start it from 2 years of age.
Measles rubella and mumps: It is also known as trivalent viral, triple viral or SRP. The first dose is administered from one year of age and the second before 2 years of age.
Yellow fever: It is administered in a single dose from one year of age.
Pentavalente; Within the EPI, this vaccine is offered, which incorporates anti-haemophilus influenzae type b, anti-hepatitis B and anti-diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis in its doses, that is, it protects against five infectious diseases. These are administered at 2, 4 and 6 months of age and boosters should be given from 18 months of age and 5 years of age.
Vaccines outside the EPI
Rotavirus: It is administered in two or three doses depending on the type of drug and the manufacturer. The Ministry of Health recommends applying it at 2 and 4 months of age. This vaccine was in the PAI from 2006 to 2017, when the State stopped paying for it.
Pneumococcus: it is also known as anti streptococcus pneumoniae It should be administered in three doses at 2, 4 and 6 months of age. In addition, a reinforcement is recommended at 15 months or starting the scheme, if it was not possible before the first year, at 2 years of age. Epidemiologist Alejandro Rísquez commented that this vaccine was available in the PAI until 2016 and in 2022 a small batch was acquired through the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) that was administered in some outpatient clinics in the country.
Meningococcus: prevents meningitis and is administered in two doses between 12 and 18 months of age. Rísquez indicated that it is also recommended for adolescents and young people who are going to live in student residences.
chicken pox: It is also known as the milkweed vaccine and is applied in two doses: the first is administered at one year of age and the second from 3 years of age.
Hepatitis A: It is administered in two doses: the first at 12 months and the second between 18 and 24 months of age. Ríquez explained that it prevents cases of fulminant hepatitis which, although it is a rare pathology, can be lethal.
Influenza: It is known as the flu vaccine and is applied from 6 months of age. Everyone can receive an annual dose of the seasonal influenza vaccine.
Covid-19: Rísquez indicated that this vaccine was recently withdrawn from the PAI, because the last batches of Sinopharm ran out in October 2023. This drug can be administered from 3 years of age and so far the use of two has been authorized. basic doses and a booster dose, according to the Ministry of Health.
VSR: The vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus has been available since 2023 and can be applied in two doses from newborns and from the first year of age.
HPV: The human papillomavirus vaccine can be administered from 9 years of age. Depending on the age at which the scheme is started, two or three doses are required. This vaccine is of great importance in terms of public health because it can prevent cases of cancer of the cervix, vulva, vagina, penis, anus and oropharynx.
Dengue: Another novelty in the SVPP recommendations is the incorporation of dengue vaccines from 7 years of age, which are administered between 2 or 3 doses depending on the manufacturer.
Vaccine coverage in Venezuela
Doctor Alejandro Rísquez explained that during the Covid-19 pandemic, vaccine coverage decreased throughout the region. However, Venezuela has not managed to recover good levels of coverage in recent years.
He explained that one of the lowest coverage is that of the anti-polio vaccine. Likewise, he pointed out that with the viral trivalent, a greater effort has been made to vaccinate the largest number of people to avoid measles outbreaks.
Coverage has been improved with the first dose, but in the second dose we are still far below. The expectation is to have 95% coverage and we do not reach 60%,” he said.
He added that the coverage of the pentavalent vaccine has also not been able to recover in the way that the medical society expects. He explained that this vaccine is necessary to avoid diphtheria outbreaks such as those that were recorded between 2016 and 2020.
“They remain in coverage that only reaches the possibility of avoiding large epidemics, but regional epidemic outbreaks and those in areas where they are not applied continue to be a major public health problem and should be the priority for any government,” he expressed.
Ríquez clarified that this deficit is mainly due to the populations and communities that have more difficulties accessing an outpatient clinic where vaccines are available. In his opinion, Venezuelans feel great confidence in vaccines, but stop receiving them due to lack of access to them.
“The State has to guarantee that there are outpatient clinics and special days to vaccinate the most vulnerable populations such as those of indigenous communities in states such as Bolívar, Amazonas, Apure and Delta Amacuro, because in some urban populations we can have coverage of 90% to 95%. , while in rural areas the vaccines do not arrive,” he warned.
Regarding the vaccines available in the private health system, Risquez indicated that the economic factor is determining in the possibility that citizens have to be vaccinated, because these drugs are priced in foreign currency and some doses can exceed $100.
“The medical community must continue to encourage it to recognize that there are new vaccines that offer greater protection and greater safety. That is a job that we are doing from the scientific societies so that they are included in the PAI and the doctor can have it within his reach to work with it,” he noted.
Recommendations to start and monitor the vaccination schedule
The pediatrician explained that when starting the vaccination of newborns, parents and representatives must receive a vaccination card that serves as a guide to keep track and continue the vaccination schedule.
The vaccination card is a fundamental tool to know how the vaccination schedule is going. There, pediatricians and health personnel write down the dates on which the vaccines were administered and the type of vaccine, that is important for us because sometimes the supply of vaccines in the market varies and with that information we can make the necessary adjustments,” he assured.
The specialist recommends looking for recognized and reliable vaccination centers. He pointed out that in the case of EPI vaccines, you must attend outpatient clinics and health centers of the Ministry of Health and the IVSS.
For vaccines that are outside the EPI, it is suggested to look for reliable private clinics and pediatric doctors duly registered with the Ministry of Health.
Finally, the expert called on citizens to seek information about vaccination schedules through reliable sources such as national health authorities, medical societies and reliable media.
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