Immunisation in police barracks low, say KCCA

KAMPALA. Police barracks in Kampala are among the communities in the city with children who have never been immunised, authorities have said.
According to the KCCA director of public health and environment, Dr Daniel Okello, suburbs such as Kisenyi, Namuwongo, Kagugube in Makerere West, Busega, Katoogo and Acholi Quarters in Kireka are hosting such children.

KCCA concerns
“I do not have concrete figures of unimmunised children in the city but we always organise targeted immunisation [programmes] in these areas because this is where you find children as old as five years who have never been immunised,” he said in an interview yesterday.
Dr Okello’s comments come after Rotary Club of Kampala Central on Saturday held an immunisation camp in Kireka Police Barracks where children as old as five years were found to have never been immunised.
Mr Ivan Mwondha, the rotary club president, said this is the third time they are encountering unimmunised children in the city.

Rising cases
“We are living in the city but people do not know that there are children as old as five years who have never received any form of immunisation. We have seen this in Namuwongo, Katoogo in Ggaba and now in Kireka,” he said.
The police spokesperson, Mr Emilian Kayima, acknowledged that their barracks are overpopulated but added that the Force’s directorate of health services provides immunisation services to their officers and neighbouring residents.
“The Police Directorate of Health Services has greatly popularised these programmes in all our barracks across the country in conjunction with other service providers such as Norvik,” he said.