Using Vaccines to Fight Measles in Democratic Republic of Congo
2020-03-27
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1The face of Dobo Mambanza is blistered as she fights to breathe.
2The little girl is crying and, slowly, going blind.
3Her mother holds three-year-old Dobo in her arms at a health center in northern Democratic Republic of Congo.
4Here, doctors are working hard to contain a deadly virus.
5Dobo does not have the new coronavirus or Ebola virus disease.
6She has measles.
7This preventable but extremely infectious disease has moved quickly through the country since early 2019.
8Measles has killed about 6,400 people, official reports show, but healthcare workers say the number is much higher.
9Reporting rates are very low.
10Dobo's mother Wanea Mabele spoke to the Reuters news agency.
11She said, "I feel guilty because I'm afraid people might say it's because I didn't get my daughter treatment quickly."
12Mabele is hardly to blame. Congo's government has delayed vaccine campaigns because of a lack of money.
13That has left millions of children without protection for measles.
14Health workers say there is also a problem with poor quality vaccines, leaving thousands at risk in a country of 81 million people.
15Health officials have sent hundreds of millions of dollars and workers to eastern Congo to fight a 19-month outbreak of Ebola.
16That disease has killed over 2,000 people.
17The number of new cases is finally decreasing, just as COVID-19, the disease from the new coronavirus, arrives.
18After a first coronavirus case in the capital Kinshasa this month, reported infections rose to 18 by last weekend.
19"Priority will be given to COVID-19 in the coming weeks or months depending on the trend of the disease," said Vincent Sodjinou.
20He leads the anti-measles effort in Congo for the World Heath Organization (WHO).
21Measles is on the rise around the world, but Congo is worst hit.
22Measles is caused by a virus.
23It can pass from one person to another when the carrier coughs or sneezes.
24The disease carries risks of brain damage, blindness and deafness.
25The hospital where Dobo is being treated lies deep in the forest.
26The nearest paved road is 125 kilometers to the south, in the city of Lisala.
27Keeping vaccines cool for the trip from Kinshasa is important, but difficult.
28On a recent vaccination campaign, medical aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres, or MSF, flew 2,700 containers to Lisala in large, cool boxes.
29In Lisala, the boxes were tied to the back of motorbikes for the 10-hour trip to the hospital.
30MSF workers said the vaccines remained at the correct temperature for the ride.
31Congo's government has year-long vaccination campaigns, but they did not target high risk areas until October 2019.
32When the government vaccines finally did come, health workers say some may have overheated.
33Official reports suggest 100 percent of children have been vaccinated in the area, said Mushadi Gidion, a local official from the health ministry.
34But that number comes from a population count in 1984.
35Health workers do not know how many children need the vaccination.
36Measles vaccines normally have an effectiveness rate of 85 percent.
37But the vaccines are less effective in children who do not have a good, healthy diet.
38Poorly-trained health workers also can reduce their effectiveness.
39"There can be many causes that can lead to the epidemic," Mushadi said.
40"Perhaps our vaccination campaign was not of high quality."
41I'm Jill Robbins.
1The face of Dobo Mambanza is blistered as she fights to breathe. The little girl is crying and, slowly, going blind. 2Her mother holds three-year-old Dobo in her arms at a health center in northern Democratic Republic of Congo. Here, doctors are working hard to contain a deadly virus. 3Dobo does not have the new coronavirus or Ebola virus disease. She has measles. This preventable but extremely infectious disease has moved quickly through the country since early 2019. 4Measles has killed about 6,400 people, official reports show, but healthcare workers say the number is much higher. Reporting rates are very low. 5Dobo's mother Wanea Mabele spoke to the Reuters news agency. She said, "I feel guilty because I'm afraid people might say it's because I didn't get my daughter treatment quickly." 6Mabele is hardly to blame. Congo's government has delayed vaccine campaigns because of a lack of money. That has left millions of children without protection for measles. 7Health workers say there is also a problem with poor quality vaccines, leaving thousands at risk in a country of 81 million people. 8Coronavirus, Ebola redirect attention 9Health officials have sent hundreds of millions of dollars and workers to eastern Congo to fight a 19-month outbreak of Ebola. That disease has killed over 2,000 people. The number of new cases is finally decreasing, just as COVID-19, the disease from the new coronavirus, arrives. 10After a first coronavirus case in the capital Kinshasa this month, reported infections rose to 18 by last weekend. 11"Priority will be given to COVID-19 in the coming weeks or months depending on the trend of the disease," said Vincent Sodjinou. He leads the anti-measles effort in Congo for the World Heath Organization (WHO). 12Measles is on the rise around the world, but Congo is worst hit. Measles is caused by a virus. It can pass from one person to another when the carrier coughs or sneezes. The disease carries risks of brain damage, blindness and deafness. 13The hospital where Dobo is being treated lies deep in the forest. The nearest paved road is 125 kilometers to the south, in the city of Lisala. 14Keeping vaccines cool for the trip from Kinshasa is important, but difficult. On a recent vaccination campaign, medical aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres, or MSF, flew 2,700 containers to Lisala in large, cool boxes. 15In Lisala, the boxes were tied to the back of motorbikes for the 10-hour trip to the hospital. MSF workers said the vaccines remained at the correct temperature for the ride. 16Helping the children 17Congo's government has year-long vaccination campaigns, but they did not target high risk areas until October 2019. When the government vaccines finally did come, health workers say some may have overheated. 18Official reports suggest 100 percent of children have been vaccinated in the area, said Mushadi Gidion, a local official from the health ministry. 19But that number comes from a population count in 1984. Health workers do not know how many children need the vaccination. 20Measles vaccines normally have an effectiveness rate of 85 percent. But the vaccines are less effective in children who do not have a good, healthy diet. Poorly-trained health workers also can reduce their effectiveness. 21"There can be many causes that can lead to the epidemic," Mushadi said. "Perhaps our vaccination campaign was not of high quality." 22I'm Jill Robbins. 23The Reuters News Agency reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 24________________________________________________________________ 25Words in This Story 26blister - n. area of the skin covered by a bubble of liquid 27outbreak - n. the sudden appearance of disease 28priority - n. the thing that is most important 29trend - n. the direction something is going or hanging to 30motorbike - n. a two-wheeled motorized vehicle 31pave - v. to cover dirt with a solid material 32deafness - n. to be unable to hear 33cough - n. releasing irritation in the throat 34sneeze - n. expelling air from the nose