Polio Vaccinations for Children in Syria

A total of 232,771 Syrian children received vaccination during SAMS’s polio campaign in March and April of 2016. 

In partnership with UNICEF and WHO, SAMS launched its second polio vaccination campaign earlier this year to provide immunization against polio to children under the age of five in southern Syria, in Daraa and Qunaitera, who have limited access to life-saving vaccinations. 

Copy of IMG_6252

In 2013, Syria reported an outbreak for the first time since 1999. Subsequently, 35 children were paralyzed. In 2014, the Polio Task Force campaign, a coalition formed by SAMS and eight Syrian and regional NGOs, successfully reached more than 1.4 million children in their door-to-door vaccination campaign in northern and northeastern Syria. Since then, not a single polio case was reported in Syria. Today, children in southern Syria are in dire need of vaccination and need immediate assistance. 

Polio mainly affects children under the age of five. One in 200 infections leads to irreversible paralysis. 95 percent of those who contract the disease are asymptomatic, so they continue to be contagious without showing signs of the disease. The polio virus is highly contagious. SAMS is proud to lead and participate in polio campaigns that ensure that children receive the vital vaccinations to grow up healthy. 
 

Polio Campaign in Southern Syria, April 2016

Image 11 of 11