3 Dec 2010

GEORGIA / POLIO

UNICEF immunized 98 percent of children up to 17 years against polio during the first round of a campaign last month in Abkhazia. The second round takes place next week. UNICEF

Posted at: December 3, 2010 5:40 pm

Duration: 02:36

Available in: SD

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Full script

STORY: GEORGIA / POLIO
TRT:  2.36
SOURCE: UNICEF
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH/ RUSSIAN/ NATS

DATELINE: 8-14 NOVEMBER 2010, ABKHAZIA, GEORGIA

SHOTLIST:
 
1.	Wide shot, laughing kids looking into camera
2.	Med shot, little boy receiving polio vaccine
3.	Wide shot, UNICEF car door swings open, Roeland Monasch steps out, walks up to doctors in field
4.	Med shot, screaming child receiving vaccine
5.	Med shot, Aunt with little baby sleeping in her arms
6.	SOUNDBITE (English) Roeland Monasch UNICEF Representative:
"There was a major outbreak of polio in Tajikistan, which spread to Kirgizstan, Uzbekistan, Russia, even the Northern Caucasus states and it is coming so close to Abkhazia and the immunization system is so weak that we decided to do a Polio campaign to protect all children against Polio."
7.	Wide shot, driving shot through Abkhazian lowlands with destroyed buildings
8.	Med shot, Roeland Monasch in car
9.	Wide shot, destroyed factory
10.	Med shot, Health workers in kindergarten administering vaccination
11.	Close up, boy receiving vaccine
12.	SOUNDBITE (Russian) Lika Gamisonia, Chief  Paediatric Doctor of the Gali Region:
"With the assistance from UNICEF and other non-governmental organizations we have conducted the trainings in schools and for the health professionals that are working in the villages. We also got help from our mobile operators, there were text messages sent to all the mobile phones. We also have provided them with the phone numbers that now basically serve as a hot line."
13.	Tracking shot, starting on cool-box opening up to doctor getting into ambulance
14.	Wide shot, ambulance driving off
15.	Med shot, driving through remote area, taken from the car
16.	SOUNDBITE (Russian) Izolda Dzhgarkava, Paediatric Doctor:
"There is a very positive attitude from the parents towards the vaccination. We did not have any refusals."
17.	SOUNDBITE (Russian) Irma Shonia, Baby's Aunt:
"We are doing all the vaccinations that are in the schedule so our daughter will be strong, beautiful and the most importantly – healthy."
18.	Tracking shot, starting close up on door swinging open revealing corridor full of parents
19.	Med shot, parents and their children
20.	Close shot, toddler on mother's arm
21.	Pan left to right, starting on kids sitting on bench in Kindergarten moving to little girl receiving vaccine

STORYLINE:
 
Schools, polyclinics and immunization centres in Abkhazia are full with children today. Parents and their children are queuing to get the oral polio vaccine as the UNICEF supported immunization campaign has started in Abkhazia. The campaign aims to immunize all children aged 0 to 17.

Polio is a highly contagious disease which may lead to lifetime disabilities or in some cases even result in death of a child so there was a very pressing reason for the vaccination campaign conducted by UNICEF in collaboration with local authorities.

SOUNDBITE (English) Roeland Monasch UNICEF Representative:
"There was a major outbreak of polio in Tajikistan, which spread to Kirgizstan, Uzbekistan, Russia, even the Northern Caucasus states and it is coming so close to Abkhazia and the immunization system is so weak that we decided to do a Polio campaign to protect all children against Polio."

In the last four months leading up this campaign, UNICEF's team had to overcome quite a few challenges. Still badly affected by 1992's civil war, which has left this region's infrastructure scarred and health system  inadequate to this day, about 300 nurses and other health workers needed to be trained up and ways to bring the message about the campaign home to parents had to be found.

SOUNDBITE (Russian) Lika Gamisonia, Chief Paediatric Doctor of the Gali Region:
"With the assistance from UNICEF and other non-governmental organizations we have conducted the trainings in schools and for the health professionals that are working in the villages. We also got help from our mobile operators, there were text messages sent to all the mobile phones. We also have provided them with the phone numbers that now basically serve as a hot line."

Additionally, UNICEF provided a large number of fridges and freezers to hospitals across the region and distributed cool-boxes to health workers so that the vaccines stayed fresh as they were delivered to children, even in the remotest areas.

SOUNDBITE (Russian) Izolda Dzhgarkava, Paediatric Doctor:
"There is a very positive attitude from the parents towards the vaccination. We did not have any refusals."

SOUNDBITE (Russian) Irma Shonia, Baby's Aunt:
"We are doing all the vaccinations that are in the schedule so our daughter will be strong, beautiful and the most importantly – healthy."

All the hard work has paid off.  97 percent of children in Abkhazia have received the polio vaccine during the campaign contributing to UNICEF's aim to eventually protect all the children in Abkhazia against any potential polio threat.