The initiative Pela Reconquista das Altas Coberturas Vacinais (PRCV) (Conquering High Vaccination), set up by the Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (Fiocruz), is holding the exhibition Vacina! in João Pessoa (Paraíba state) to educate the population about the history and science of vaccination. The exhibition runs through July 16th at the Espaço Cultural José Lins do Rego in the capital of Paraíba.

The PRCV project has led to a change in polio vaccination rates in Paraíba and Amapá states from one of the lowest positions in immunization rankings to the top of the list in 2022. The initiative’s results were disclosed in March of this year.

What does the project consist of?

PRCV started in 2021, in partnership with the Brazilian Immunization Society (SBIm) and the National Immunization Program (PNI) to raise awareness and disseminate vaccination information, as well as set up vaccination campaigns. The project has also improved vaccination room infrastructure, trained teams, and expedited data computation in the Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS) (Brazil’s public health service).

“Brazil has always been the gold standard in vaccination and has faced a challenging scenario with the decrease in vaccination and the forming of a population that is unprotected,” explains PRCV’s coordinator, Lurdinha Maia, in a statement by Fiocruz. This drop is mostly due to misinformation regarding vaccines and a false sense of protection against preventable diseases.

PRCV’s starting point was the two states with low polio vaccination rates: Amapá and Paraíba. In 2020, Amapá had the worst target audience polio vaccination rate in the country, close to 42%; while Paraíba had vaccinated only 72.7%. In 2022, after a little over a year into the project, both states moved to the top of the ranking, and are the only states to surpass the national target of 95% – Amapá vaccinated 98% of the target audience and Paraíba 100%.

Glossary

Vaccination rates: rate that shows how much of the target population has been immunized. The target audience is usually the one that is most prone to infection.

Poliomyelitis: a disease caused by a virus. It usually attacks the spinal cord, a part of the body that is important for movement coordination and reflexes. Some of those infected can no longer walk. The contagion takes place from one person to another and is linked to poor hygiene and the lack of basic sanitation (including sewage treatments). The virus attacks children under five mainly. The disease was eradicated in Brazil in 1994.

Sources: Campanha Nacional de Vacinação contra Poliomielite, Caderno de Saúde Pública, Fiocruz, and PRC.

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