Azernews.Az

Since 2007, Azerbaijan has taken part in European Immunization Week (EIW), an annual initiative of the WHO Regional Office for Europe, with the goal of increasing vaccination coverage by raising awareness about the importance of immunization.

Several activities to beconducted in Azerbaijan within the framework of Immunization Week in 2014,AzerTag state news agency reported.

National conference dedicated to European Immunization Week will be held at the Republican Center for Hygiene and Epidemiology on April 25. In order to participate in the conference Dr. Niyazi Cakmak, technical officer of Vaccine preventable diseases and Immunization program, WHO Regional Office for Europe will be visiting Azerbaijan.

Polio Supplementary Immunization Activities among children under age 5 in Yardimli, Khizi and Khojavend districts - 1st round: 21-26 April 2014, 2nd round: 26-31 May 2014
During Immunization Week, local health facilities will provide immunization services according to the national immunization schedule to all children who have missed routine vaccination for any reason. Also an extensive public awareness campaign, including SMS notification, will take place to increase overall routine immunization coverage.

"Immunization for life" will be the theme of European Immunization Week 2014. Activities in the Region will focus on all age groups - reminding parents to vaccinate their children but also underlining the importance of maintaining personal protection from preventable diseases throughout the life course.

Other regions of the World Health Organization (WHO) have also established their own successful Vaccination/Immunization Week initiatives, and in 2014 as in 2013, all WHO regions will unite under the over-arching framework of World Immunization Week (WIW). The goal of World Immunization Week is to support one of most efficient public health interventions in the world- to use vaccine to protect all people from infancy to old age from diseases. The focus for WIW 2014 will be "Are you up to date?" looking at public education about vaccination.