Vaccination: Three women in Nicaragua take a different path toward a common goal

April 2018

Carla Bethania Ortiz, 26, of Comarco Bosque de Xiloá, Nicaragua, never understood why she had not been vaccinated as a child. Unlike her friends, she did not have a vaccination card.

One day when a “brigadist” or community health volunteer walked by her home, he decided to chase her and asked her to be vaccinated. It happened to be the “Jornada de Vacunación” – the days when vaccines are given to everyone in the community without any changes.

However, since Karla is a minor, she needed her parental consent. Carla knew that her mother, Silvia Elena Ortiz, did not believe in vaccines, but decided to bring a health care provider to her home to explain the benefits of vaccination to her. With more information, Silvia agreed that Karla should be vaccinated.

“I was very proud to receive my first vaccine and my vaccination card,” Karla says.

Now, with her three children, Carla never misses the “Jornada de Vacunación del Poder Ciudadano”, organized by the Nicaraguan Ministry of Health and supported annually by WHO / PAHO, to vaccinate the community in hard-to-reach areas.

Today, Karla will take her 2-month-old daughter, Franeichy, to receive WHO-recommended vaccines at the Xiloá Health Center. 18:00 is Karla and she wakes up to make breakfast, bathe her children and dress them for a special occasion. Karla and her entire family leave the house at 8:30 a.m. and walk to Lagoon Xiloá, where a 10-minute boat ride to Xiloá sails them.

A few hours before Karl’s family wakes up, Maritza nurse Elena Pallaviccini Cruz, 51, prepares at home for the “Jornada de Vacunación” in Los Brasiles, Nicaragua – an hour’s drive from a health center in Xiloi. After knowing two children who were paralyzed by polio when she was a child, Maritza decided she wanted to be a nurse. That was over 30 years ago.

“It is my wish that no child in my country dies of an immunizable disease,” she says.

Traveling to Nurse Maritzi is not easy. He leaves the house at 7 am and takes the bus. After the bus, she takes a motorcycle taxi and walks a little longer. Sometimes, if she is lucky, she gets a carriage ride from community members, which saves her time. The last part of the trip involves a walk along the shore of Lake Xolotlán before finally reaching the health center at 8:00.

Health workers and “brigadists” are preparing for the Jornada de Vacunación. A large balloon and balloons hang on the fence of the Health Center, chairs and tents are set up, and the DJ plays exciting music to get the attention of the community. Piñata was even hung from a tree so children could have fun while waiting for immunization.

After arriving at the health center at about 9am, Karla and her family wait under a tent with other members of the community. When it is their turn, they enter the health center and meet with Maritz, who has already set up a vaccination station.

Maritza provides four vaccines – inactivated polio vaccine (IPV), rotavirus, pentavalent and pneumococcus (PCV13) – which protect against 8 different diseases.

After Franeichy’s vaccination, she reminds Karl to bring her back for the next round of vaccines and give her Franeichy’s first vaccination card.

“I always vaccinate my children since I was a baby because I love them and I know vaccines save lives,” Karla says.

Before the family can head home, Maritza stops Sylvia and asks her if she’s up-to-date on her vaccines. She quietly answers “no,” but agrees to be vaccinated. She is receiving a tetanus and diphtheria vaccine. While Silvia didn’t believe in vaccines originally, she “changed her mind about the love she has for her grandchildren,” Karla says. “Today she knows how important vaccination is to prevent several diseases.”

In Nicaragua, anyone can receive immunization services throughout the year for free at local health centers, but the Department of Health is launching a major campaign, the Jornada Nacional de Vacunación del Poder Ciudadano, in April each year as part of Vaccination Week in America. This year, WHO Region of America (PAHO) is celebrating its 16th week of vaccination in America. To date, more than 720 million people have been vaccinated as part of their annual campaign.

Whether you are young or old, immunization makes the world a healthier place for everyone, now and in the future.