vaccination catch-up is being prepared

Their mission will be to carry out a vaccination catch-up operation, particularly in Saint-Laurent du Maroni.

Faced with an increase in whooping cough, healthcare workers from the Public Health France health reserve arrived in Guyana at the beginning of February. Since August 2024, 18 cases of whooping cough, including two infant deaths, have occurred in Saint-Laurent du Maroni.

At the CTG, the PMI service, Maternal and Child Protection, is preparing this vaccination catch-up operation. “We are going to increase vaccination time slots to meet user demand, explains Josiane Dupré, head of the childhood, family and health center at the Territorial Collectivity of Guyana. We will provide resources to allow other operators to intervene within our centers, including in Mana and Grand-Santi. We will also make doses of vaccines available.”

The Saint-Laurent PMI has a cold room that can accommodate up to 10,000 doses of vaccines.

We have a territorial pharmacy which will provide all PMI centers and we have a buffer stock in our 22 centers. We also have a weekly supply. We are not short, we will then have to adapt the orders.

Josiane Dupré, head of the childhood, family and health center at the Territorial Collectivity of Guyana

From February 4, around fifteen healthcare workers will carry out this major vaccination campaign against whooping cough at the PMI, at Chog and in the informal neighborhoods of Saint-Laurent du Maroni, in partnership with the Red Cross. This campaign will last three weeks.

Normally, the Saint-Laurent du Maroni PMI vaccinates around sixty children in these premises every Wednesday. “There are also appointments during the week, the doctor and the nurse vaccinate, explains Josiane Dupré. Until now, we are not vaccinating pregnant women in PMI, but in this context, we are thinking about it, because the PMI midwives might be able to do it.”

The Saint-Laurent PMI includes midwives, nurses, childcare nurses, childcare assistants, and only one doctor. “We should have four, but three have not been replaced, deplores Josiane Dupré who believes that the low vaccination coverage in Saint-Laurent du Maroni is partly due “in the medical desert”. “In PMI, it is particularly difficult to recruit doctors”she adds.

The low vaccination coverage can also be explained by insecurity. “There are people without social security coverage and without papers so they fear that by coming to institutions they could be apprehended,” she notices. The CTG reminds that in PMI, there is no advance fee and the procedures are free.

Whooping cough is caused by bacteria and is very contagious. An infected person transmits whooping cough to 15 other people on average, according to the Pasteur Institute. Contamination occurs by air. This is a respiratory disease that begins with a runny nose, then a strong cough and difficulty breathing. In the majority of cases, there is no fever.

The ARS recalls that to “deal with this epidemic, the most effective strategy remains vaccination”. She also invites all health professionals to report cases of whooping cough that they identify.

As a reminder, the whooping cough vaccination policy is based on 3 complementary strategies:

• Early and compulsory primary vaccination of infants from the age of 2 months and the administration of recommended boosters until adulthood;
• Vaccination of pregnant women from the second trimester of pregnancy, favoring the period between 20 and 36 weeks of amenorrhea;
• Vaccination of people likely to be in close contact with the infant during its first 6 months of life (so-called cocooning strategy).

Furthermore, vaccination is also recommended for the following populations:

• Immunocompromised people or people suffering from a chronic respiratory disease;
• Healthcare professionals and students in the medical and paramedical sectors;
• People working in close and repeated contact with infants aged less than 6 months and more generally early childhood professionals.