Poliomyelitis eradication and its impact on primary health care in the Philippines

Since 1992, the Philippines has conducted four national immunization days (NIDs) for polio eradication. Surveillance for acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) began in 1992. Through good routine immunization, the incidence of paralytic polio had decreased to low levels in the Philippines even before the NIDs were initiated. With continuously improving AFP and virologic surveillance, wild poliovirus has not been isolated since May 1993. NIDs had a direct positive effect on child health through supplementary immunization with oral poliovirus vaccine, measles vaccine, and tetanus toxoid, as well as through the distribution of vitamin A. Following the successful NIDs, the government budget for vaccine purchases increased significantly. Also, the NID strategy was used as a model for several other priority prevention programs of the Department of Health. Through the development of AFP surveillance, polio eradication also helped to improve surveillance for other Expanded Programme on Immunization diseases.