Rotary and The Goal of Polio Eradication

During the first half the 20th century, poliomyelitis paralyzed half a million people a year. Today, the disease is on the verge of eradication.

The war against polio has been waged on many fronts for decades and never has victory been too close. It is a battle fought with two tiny drops of vaccine, sophisticated technology, an army of dedicated volunteers who help scientists track an elusive foe.

The struggle to achieve global polio eradication is a public health story of epic preparations. Rotary International is the volunteer arm of a global partnership dedicated to eradicating polio. Public partners include the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Rotary’s role on this team has been labeled a model for public/private partnership for years to come.

Rotary helped in eradicating polio in the Western Pacific Region by initiating the mass polio immunization program in the Philippines in 1979-1980.

The then RI president, James Bomar, was coming to the Philippines to launch the first Health Hunger and Humanity Program of Rotary involving the mass immunization of children against polio and I was asked as District Governor then, to secure the formal approval and support of the Secretary of Health. Through representations made to President Marcos and Mrs. Imelda Marcos, the Secretary of Health, Enrique Garcia, approved the joint effort.

Since then, the Rotary, led by past RI president M.A.T. Caparas, past directors Francisco Delgado and Sabino Santos and myself and a Rotary Country Committee headed by PDG Oscar de Venecia, has worked with the Department of Health under various administrations in pursuing the mass immunization against polio among Filipino children.

Worldwide, Rotary members are leading the charge by committing nearly a half-a-billion dollars in private funds through 2005 to provide polio vaccine, technical support, medical personnel, laboratory equipment and educational materials for health workers and parents.

Of even greater significance, Rotary members offer their compassion, time and expertise. During the National Immunization Days (NIDs), Rotarians volunteer to help at immunization posts, deliver vaccine, transport health workers and recruit other volunteers.

The mass mobilization for NIDs, referred to as "social mobilization," has involved election-style campaigning and innovative strategies to get the message to people who are cut off from the mainstream by conflict, geography or poverty.

Rotarians prepare and distribute different types of mass communication tools, including posters, TV spots, radio promotions, billboards, folk songs, and promotional messages on floats, trucks, rickshaws and in local newspapers.

The lengths to which they will go to bring the vaccine to children are heroic; they travel hundreds of kilometers, on camel, by boat, by helicopter, on horseback, or on foot for days to reach every child.

The following are some examples of Rotary in action:

• In India, over 100,000 Rotarians, their families and friends joined the Indian government for three consecutive years, immunizing over 150 million children in one day – signaling the largest public health event ever in the world.

• In Uganda, Rotarians actively participated in the planning and implementation of NIDs. Thousands of Rotary volunteers assisted authorities by providing cold storage facilities to preserve the vaccine, transporting vaccine to immunization posts, and helping track children who might have missed the immunization. As respected leaders in their communities, Rotarians played a key advocacy role to win people’s confidence in the program.

• Since 1996, Rotarians in Angola have led a campaign to solicit corporate jets, helicopters and vehicles to move vaccine through Angola’s mine-infested countryside. Additional volunteers mobilized by a single Rotary club helped the government reach 80 percent of its target population of children under age five.

• In countries like Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam and Yemen where there are no Rotary Clubs, the Polio Plus program funds vaccine procurement, operational support and promotional materials for NIDs. (To be continued)

(The Rotary is a worldwide organization of business and professional men and women who do service to the communities, encourage high ethical standards in business and profession and promote international understanding, goodwill and peace.

The author is a past Rotary International director and is currently a member of the Polio Plus Speakers Bureau. He is a major donor to the Rotary Foundation.)