PESHAWAR: Children have been dying of diphtheria in southern districts and Malakand division owing to non-availability of vaccine and drugs required for treatment of the infected people, according to sources.

“Two children at a Darul Uloom (seminary) died of the total 37 students diagnosed positive for diphtheria, with six of them seriously, in Dir district,” Dr Ayub Roz, the deputy director of expanded programme on immunisation, told Dawn.

He said that government didn’t have DT vaccine to protect children above seven years as they were administering them diphtheria pertussis and tetanus (DPT) vaccine, which was meant for the children below seven years of age. “Low DPT coverage and non-availability of DT and anti-diphtheria serum are causing avoidable deaths,” he said.

However, Dr Ayub said that there was a shift from emphasis only on polio to other childhood vaccine-preventable diseases also. “Prevention of polio is very important but we are also giving more attention to other children ailments,” he added.

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About outbreak of the disease in Dir, Dr Ayub said that they closed the seminary and isolated the infected people. He said that the district health officer didn’t communicate the incident to the health department on time.

Teams were immediately sent there after getting information about the disease from other sources, he said. “Our teams visited the Darul Uloom which housed 299 students including 50 per cent Afghans. They held counselling sessions with the teachers and elders of the nearby villages,” he added.

Dr Ayub said that health department was supposed to assist the districts in maintenance of cold-chain and help in patients’ treatment but the responsibility rested with the district health officers.

Sources in the health department told Dawn that the World Health Organisation had been providing anti-diphtheria serum (ADS) to them till 2015 but then asked the government to procure it from its own resources to save lives of children.

They said that outbreak of diphtheria was recently reported in Punjab where health department imported some 5,000 doses ADS. The WHO had also advised the health department to procure it from Punjab on loan basis to be given to the infected people.

Sources said that health department approached the WHO for supply of ADS but it had exhausted the stock. The world health agency used to provide free ADS to the people, affected by earthquake and flood but then it wanted the government to do it, they said. Only last year, the WHO provided ADS to more than 65 patients but then the people in vulnerable areas depended on government’ response, they added.

Sources said that ADS and DT, both were available in the international market which could be procured through the WHO and other relevant agencies to ensure standard and quality but the government had to allocate amount for it.

“The WHO informed the health department about the diphtheria-related deaths and incidents more than once but the latter was unmoved as it was preoccupied with anti-polio vaccination, leaving aside other vaccine-preventable diseases,” sources said.

They said that Malakand division and southern districts are the worst-hit areas where children suffered from low-immunity.

Published in Dawn, February 29th, 2016