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The Drum Beat 407 - Nigeria: Communication for Polio Eradication

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Issue #
407
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This issue of the Drum Beat is part of an ongoing series that highlights current means of addressing and assessing global polio eradication efforts through communication. The challenge of eradicating polio highlights many of the overall strengths, opportunities, and difficulties for effective development communication; for that reason we have provided regular insights from polio-focused practitioners and researchers. The Nigeria-focused projects and resources below were added to The Communication Initiative website over the past two months. They include summaries of presentations from the Expert Review Committee (ERC) meeting on polio eradication held in Nigeria in May 2007, as well as summaries from the most recent polio communication Technical Advisory Group (TAG) meeting held in June 2007.

We welcome information about your polio-related activities, materials, thinking pieces, and evaluations. Send details to Deborah Heimann at dheimann@comminit.com

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Please see The CI's Polio Theme Site - providing a specific focus on the communication information related to polio on The CI website.

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STRATEGIES TO ADDRESS POLIO IN NIGERIA

1.Strengthening Polio Immunisation Activities - Nigeria

This summary describes an approach developed by the Community Participation for Action in the Social Sector (COMPASS) Project in order to minimise missed polio vaccine opportunities for children in 8 northern high-risk states in Nigeria. In essence, the strategy attempts to blanket communities with information about polio, drawing on partner organisations such as the Federation of Muslim Women's Associations of Nigeria (FOMWAN). Through such collaborative efforts, they lead monthly house-to-house visits to resolve non-compliant cases and to persuade Imams to include immunisation messages in their sermons. According to COMPASS, the strategy has proven successful, and a quick analysis showed that, just during late March 2007, zero-dose cases dropped by 31.8% (83) and immunisation increased by 2.4% (7,193) in the area of Gwaram alone.

2. Russian Woman in 200km Walk to Raise Polio Awareness in Nigeria

This article describes the efforts of Russian-born Lora Kabir and her 50 volunteers in raising public awareness of poliomyelitis and the polio vaccination campaign in Nigeria. The group planned to walk 225 kilometres from the populous and polio-afflicted city of Kano to Kaduna, the political capital. The walk was to begin on May 12 2007, and was estimated to take a week to complete, allowing the group to stop at every village along the way to talk to people about the risks of polio and importance of immunisation. Members of the Kano Polio Victims' Association were among the participants.

3.Knowledge, Perception and Beliefs About Childhood Immunisation and Attitude Towards Uptake of Poliomyelitis Immunization in Northern Nigeria

by Professor M. Kabir et al.

Commissioned by the National Programme on Immunisation (NPI), this study examined knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions regarding vaccination in 11 states in northern Nigeria. Parameters included awareness of the protective properties of vaccines, reasons for acceptance of poliomyelitis immunisation, reasons for rejection of polio vaccines, and reasons for poor uptake or rejection of immunisation. Based on the findings of the study, a list of 15 main conclusions was generated, in the hopes of guiding overall programme implementation as well as addressing specific key issues.

4.Nigeria: Polio Eradication Suffers Setback

by Onwuka Nzeshi

This article discusses the status of the polio eradication programme in Nigeria, following the commencement of a national-level review of the polio communication strategy of the Polio Eradication Initiative (PEI) in the country. This review was organised by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), in collaboration with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Nigerian Red Cross, and the European Union (EU), in response to a global meeting of PEI stakeholders held in Geneva in February 2007.

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Presentations from the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) Meeting, June 28-29 2007 in Abuja, Nigeria

Hosted by the UNICEF Nigeria office in Abuja, this meeting brought together a variety of partner organisations and stakeholders involved in polio communication in Nigeria. It included a series of presentations that outlined the recent epidemiological trends of wild poliovirus (WPV), data and monitoring issues and challenges, and community engagement - all at a national level. State-specific presentations were given by communication practitioners working in the 3 very high-risk (VHR) Nigerian states - Kano, Katsina, and Jigawa - with a focus on the current communication platform, challenges, and ways forward for the programme in these areas. Please click here for a list of all the summaries and links to the full presentations from this meeting.

For more information on any of the below presentations, please contact Nance Webber, UNICEF, nwebber@unicef.org or Chris Morry, The CI, cmorry@comminit.com

5.Overview of Wild Poliovirus Epidemiology In Nigeria

This presentation was given by a WHO representative and details the current WPV trends in Nigeria between 2006-2007. It discusses whether Nigeria has made any progress in achieving transmission interruption, and goes on to outline the challenges to interruption of the disease and the proposed way forward. Special attention was given to border areas, and high-risk polio afflicted states, as well as to increasing population immunity within the country. Overall, Nigeria has seen significant progress in 2007, and has witnessed an 80% decrease in disease burden as compared to 2006.

Click here for a summary.

Click here for the full presentation in PowerPoint format.

6.Data Management in IPDs - Issues and Challenges

This presentation provides an overview of the development of data tools within Nigeria's polio communication programme, and provides examples of data collection, sample forms, the monitoring process, and data flow for immunisation preventable diseases (IPDs). The 3 sets of forms comprising the data tool checklist are described, and examples of each are provided. Ongoing data challenges include questionable quality of data management at the state level, limited capacity for analysis of communication data at the state level, and inadequate numbers of personnel dedicated to collecting communication data at the community level. The team suggested that more rigourous training for data monitors and capacity building at supervisory levels may resolve some of these issues.

Click here for a summary.

Click here for the full presentation in PowerPoint format.

7.Engaging Communities for Polio Eradication in Nigeria - Review of the National Communication Strategy

This presentation gives an overview of the communication environment in Nigeria and the key components and results of the current polio communication strategy, including community dialogues, mass and traditional media engagement, social mapping, and high-level political advocacy. It outlines the supplementary immunisation activity (SIA) calendar, provides an update on TAG recommendations from previous meetings held in Zimbabwe and Cameroon, and concludes with overall observations and issues, and the proposed way forward for 2007.

Click here for a summary.

Click here for the full presentation in PowerPoint format.

8.Jigawa State Presentation - Country Communication Review

This presentation gives an overview of the WPV case profile in the Nigerian state of Jigawa and describes the state's communication platform and objectives for 2007. The core platforms of Jigawa's communication strategy include interpersonal and group communication, advocacy and partnerships, and mass media participation. Ongoing state communication strategies include encouraging child-to-child engagement, engaging with new religious or traditional leaders, and carrying out further skill and capacity building with health personnel.

Click here for a summary.

Click here for the full presentation in PowerPoint format.

9.Kano State - Country Communication Review

This presentation opens with an overview of the epidemiological trends and the WPV case profile for Nigeria's Kano state in 2007, and then describes the current communication platform, strategic planning, and results of these interventions. Supported by a number of partners, community mobilisation between rounds has involved a number of new initiatives, including: deployment of vaccinators to Islamiyya schools for sensitisation before rounds; engagement of the Muslim Women Association (FOMWAN) in house-to-house visits; identification of non-compliance households and resolution of those cases; and identification of newborns and zero-dose children for vaccination.

Click here for a summary.

Click here for the full presentation in PowerPoint format.

10.Katsina State Presentation - Polio Eradication Initiative Country Communication Review

This presentation opens with an overview of the epidemiological trends and the WPV case profile for Nigeria's Katsina state, and then enumerates the 6 main programmatic objectives for 2007. The polio communication platform in the state builds on the primary strategic approaches of community engagement, advocacy, mass media, and communication materials. The main residual challenges and innovations developed to resolve some of these issues are discussed here.

Click here for a summary.

Click here for the full presentation in PowerPoint format.

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For presentations from other TAG meetings, please see:


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Presentations from the 12th Expert Review Committee (ERC) Meeting on Polio Eradication, May 3-4 2007, Nigeria

The following summaries are from presentations that were part of the 12th meeting of the Expert Review Committee (ERC) on polio eradication in Nigeria, the first to be held in the country following the global Urgent Stakeholder Consultation on Polio Eradication that was convened in Geneva in February 2007. The objective of the meeting was to discuss the major findings, deliberations, and reports on progress made against the 11th ERC meeting recommendations regarding overall polio eradication efforts in Nigeria. In attendance were members from the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), UNICEF, the Government of Nigeria, WHO, and members from the very high-risk (VHR) states of Kano, Katsina, and Jigawa.

For more information on any of the following presentations, please contact Nance Webber, UNICEF, nwebber@unicef.org

11.12th Meeting of the Expert Review Committee (ERC) on Polio Eradication in Nigeria - Final Report

This presentation gives an overview of proceedings of the 12th ERC meeting, and summarises the committee's recommendations in the areas of SIAs, surveillance and laboratory activities, social mobilisation efforts, and routine immunisation. Following this, 8 major programmatic recommendations are offered to guide implementation over the latter half of 2007. The 13th ERC meeting was scheduled to take place from September 11-12 2007, and to focus on polio eradication in the very high risk and high risk states. In recognition of this, the ERC proposed that the meeting convene in Kano and include participation of representatives of all 6 of these states.

Click here for a summary.

12. Implementation Status of the 11th Expert Review Committee (ERC) Recommendations

This presentation discusses the implementation status of the recommendations that emerged from the 11th ERC meeting, held in December of 2006. It reports on progress in the areas of SIAs, social mobilisation, surveillance and laboratory, and routine immunisation. Of the 19 recommendations, 9 had been fully implemented, 4 were partially achieved, and 6 were still in progress.

Click here for a summary.

13.Supplementary Immunisation Activities (SIAs) Operations and Quality

This presentation outlines the operations and quality of SIAs in Nigeria, including the following: activities held in January to April of 2007; trends of children immunised from January to March of 2007; trends of child survival intervention incentives; core process indicators and monitoring data; and challenges and priorities for the second half of 2007. During this time, the programme hopes to focus on accelerating gains in immunity in children in northern Nigeria through improved quality and intensity of immunisation activities, while maintaining southern Nigeria as polio-free.

Click here for a summary.

14.Engaging Communities in Immunisation

This presentation examines community involvement and social mobilisation in Nigeria's immunisation programme. In addition to exploring progress made against the 11th ERC meeting recommendations, it provides an update on the outcomes of 2007 Immunisation Plus Days (IPDs), key challenges facing the programme, new initiatives, and ways forward throughout the remainder of 2007. To move forward, the presenters suggest that the programme rapidly engage new political leadership through high-level advocacy, work with religious groups to develop and disseminate their own messages at the grassroots level, and hold Technical Advisory Group (TAG) Country Communication Reviews to guide future communication planning and implementation.

Click here for a summary.

15.Review of Routine Immunisation - Nigeria

This presentation reviews Nigeria's routine immunisation programme activities from 2006 into 2007. It reports on the 2 major previous 11th ERC meeting recommendations, which included expanding the Reach Every Ward (REW) strategy to the remaining 40% of legal government areas (LGAs) by the end of 2007, and encouraging all states to initiate quarterly feedback bulletins on routine immunisation (RI) coverage to authorities at the federal and state levels. In addition, ongoing challenges were enumerated and priority activities were discussed for the second half of 2007.

Click here for a summary.

16.Joint Presentation of the Very High Risk States - Kano, Katsina and Jigawa

Offered jointly by members of Kano, Katsina, and Jigawa states in Nigeria, this presentation reports on key activities and innovations undertaken since December 2006, challenges facing the states in both polio eradication and routine immunisation in the latter half of 2007, and the implementation status of previous ERC meeting recommendations. Across all states, efforts were made in the areas of border synchronisation of immunisation activities and strengthening relationships between religious and traditional institutions through joint meetings and workshops. The teams asked the ERC for guidance in 6 major areas of concern common to all states, to guide programming over the next 2 quarters.

Click here for a summary.

17.AFP Surveillence Quality and Wild Poliovirus Epidemiology

This presentation reviews acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) surveillance quality and WPV epidemiology in Nigeria. In particular, it outlines surveillance and laboratory performance and the current WPV burden; it also assesses whether Nigeria is in fact making any progress towards eradication. The presentation concludes with 3 major areas that could lead the programme forward in 2007, including continued improvement in the quality of IPDs, introduction of additional innovations to control the surge in WPV Type 3 cases, and continued strengthening of routine immunisation.

Click here for a summary.

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For archived issues of The Drum Beat focused on immunisation and vaccines, please see:


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This issue of The Drum Beat was written by Kiyuri Naicker, Coordinator, Routine Immunisaton and Polio Communication, The CI. For more information on the Routine and Polio Communication Initiative, please contact knaicker@comminit.com

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