CAIRO - In response to current rumours that harmful vaccines are being used in a number of Egyptian governorates to vaccinate children at their homes by unidentified people, the Ministry of Health and Population has stressed that there are no campaigns at present to vaccinate children at their homes in the governorates. Furthermore, when there are vaccination campaigns, the medical teams that conduct them wear a uniform and carry IDs from the Ministry. All vaccines used by such teams in the governorates are associated with the Ministry for example being provided to governmental medical units who supply the vaccinations teams. The vaccines are registered at the Ministry of Health and Population and approved by the World Health Organisation as well as being tested by the Egyptian Organisation of Biological Products and Vaccines. The Ministry appeals to citizens to be aware take the following action when anyone calls at their homes and offers to vaccinate their children: they should check their IDs to be sure of the callers' identification and/or immediate inform the relevant authorities. Dr Amr Qandil, first under-secretary of the Preventive Medicine Department at the Ministry of Health and Population has stressed that there have been no cases of mortality as a result of any vaccinations, because all such talk is merely rumour. He urges people not to pass on or respond to such rumours, which have a groundless base and may have an adverse effect on the national vaccination and immunisation programmes for children, and consequently on the children themselves.
