Health Education teachers in Ogun State have been trained on the essence of government health intervention programmes to enable them to sensitise learners on the benefits of vaccination and related issues.
The training organised by the Primary Healthcare Development Board in collaboration with United Nations Children’s Fund was held at
Ayetoro, Yewa North Local Government Area of the state on Friday.
The State Health Education Officer, Waheed Elegbede, noted that the objective of the training was to create awareness, encourage better health behavioural change, and enhance sectoral collaboration of education-health partnerships.
He maintained that the role of health education teachers is important in knowledge impartation, as they are the mouthpieces in their various schools to disseminate the right information on vaccination and other health-related interventions.
In her presentation, one of the facilitators, Olubunmi Opayemi, who gave the update on Non-Polio Supplemental Immunisation Activities (NPSIA), said the last Human Papilloma Virus ( HPV) vaccination campaign was achieved despite the misconceptions, saying the engagement of the health education teachers would improve the faith of parents and students in immunisation and vaccination activities.
On his part, Consultant on Social Behavioural Change, UNICEF, Dr. Pita Obam, commended the state government for prioritising the health of its citizens, imploring the teachers to propagate government’s health programmes by dispelling any associated rumours and misinformation.
Responding on behalf of the participants, Peter Olalowo and Adeola Fatunmbi appreciated the organiser for the training, promising to put in their best to improve the health of children.
