Education and vaccines mean 69% immunized

Keeping sponsored children and their families disease-free requires awareness and vaccinations. When Plan started in Dosso just 12% of under three-ear olds got vaccines. Now 69% of children are vaccinated against measles, polio, rubella, tetanus, diphtheria and tuberculosis.  And Plan distributes mosquito nets to thousands of families to protect sleeping children from malaria-ridden mosquitoes.

Plan intends to launch vaccination centers in sponsored children’s villages, each with a refrigerator fully stocked with vaccines, staffed by villagers trained as community health agents. Plan raises awareness of how to prevent disease spreading, of home remedies and other simple treatments for those who are stricken. Discussion groups, theater presentations and educational videos all help. Funnier sketches are often very memorable and may be more effective in changing behavior. These sessions and theatrical sketches cover:

• hand washing and basic hygiene to prevent the spread of diarrhea caused by bacteria and parasites
• sugar-and-saltwater solution for children with diarrhea to prevent dehydration from loss of fluids
• cleaning the eyes of children who have conjunctivitis, a highly contagious eye infection also known as “pink eye”
• using mosquito nets and other ways to prevent malaria
• regular vaccinations and baby weighings as part of routine infant and toddler healthcare
• the spread of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases, and how to protect against them