NEW DELHI: The Government has taken steps to create awareness among parents of newborns about the importance of vaccination, the Lok Sabha was informed on Friday.
Minister of State (Health and Family Welfare) Ashwini Kumar Choubey in a written reply, here said steps are taken to create awareness among parents of newborns across the country.
The steps taken include awareness generation through electronic and print media like radio spots, television, poster, hoardings.
Inter personal communication by front line health workers like Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) and
Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs). Incentives to ASHAs for mobilizing the children to the session site and for ensuring full immunization to the child at 1, 2 and 5 years of age, the Minister said.
Delivering free, audiomessages about immunization directly to mobile phones of the caregivers from the second trimester of pregnancy until the child is one year old.
Steps taken by the Government to address the issue of vaccine hesitancy, public mistrust of vaccines and immunisation services in the country include active social mobilisation is carried out in the states to counter the vaccine hesitancy among high-risk areas and groups. A cadre of skilled and experienced mobilisers of Social Mobilization Network (SMNET) is deployed in select states to mobilise the communities and address the mistrust, rumours and hesitation regarding vaccination, he added.
The services of ASHA workers is utilized to create awareness about vaccination and establish a line of primary communication between the general public and health workers. ASHA workers have been capacitated through various platforms to enhance their Interpersonal Communication Skills to establish and strengthen the line of primary communication between public and health workers.
(AGENCIES)
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