A decrease in the incidence of 39 infections is noted in Kazakhstan

The current sanitary and epidemiological situation in Kazakhstan was reviewed at the first meeting of the Government in the new year, chaired by Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov.

As noted by the Minister of Health Azhar Giniyat, by the end of 2023, the epidemic situation for infectious diseases remained stable. Thanks to preventive measures, 20 particularly dangerous infectious diseases, including plague, cholera and polio, have not been registered. At the same time, there has been a decrease in the incidence of 39 infections, including coronavirus, rotavirus and acute intestinal infections.

Currently, the regular season of acute respiratory infections is continuing, which lasts annually from October to May. For prevention purposes, 2.4 million people from risk groups were vaccinated against influenza last year, which is 12% of the country's population. At the same time, the recommended WHO level is at least 10%.

In general, since the beginning of the epidemic season, more than 31 thousand patients have been treated in hospitals, and more than 2 million patients have been treated on an outpatient basis. In total, about 10 thousand infectious disease beds have been deployed across the country, of which about 3 thousand are for children.

Despite the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, appropriate monitoring continues. The situation of coronavirus infection in the Republic of Kazakhstan is stable. Over the past 6 months, from 100 to 400 cases have been recorded monthly, which confirms the year-round circulation of coronavirus among the population.

By the end of 2023, more than 29 thousand cases of measles were registered in the country, of which 80% were in children under 14 years of age. Since January 1, 1,674 cases of measles have been detected. To stabilize the situation, routine vaccination was carried out last year, as a result of which about 700 thousand children under the age of six were vaccinated.

In addition, funds were allocated from the Government's reserve – 1.5 million doses of vaccines against measles, rubella and mumps were purchased. To date, more than 930 thousand people have been vaccinated as part of additional vaccination, and more than 20 thousand people are covered daily.

Akim of Karaganda region Ermaganbet Bulekpayev and Akim of Kostanay region Kumar Aksakalov spoke about measures to strengthen immunization against measles in the regions.

The Prime Minister stressed that according to the results of monitoring last year, no patients with the most dangerous infections were recorded. At the same time, there is a decrease in many common viral infections.

«However, since last year, there has been an increase in the incidence of measles in Kazakhstan. This outbreak is the largest in the country in the last 10 years. About 80% of patients are children under 14 years of age. And most of them have not received the necessary vaccination», — said Alikhan Smailov.

He added that unvaccinated patients have a high risk of severe complications. However, a considerable number of parents deliberately refuse to vaccinate their children, which can lead to serious consequences.

«The only way to stabilize the measles situation is vaccination. 1.5 million doses of vaccines have been purchased for additional mass immunization against measles. For these purposes, the Government allocated over 3 billion tenge from the reserve in September last year. However, as we can see, measles immunization coverage remains low in some regions», — The Prime Minister indicated.

In this regard, Alikhan Ismailov instructed to expand the coverage of measles immunization, as well as to intensify vaccination with other preventive vaccinations.

«It is very important to create conditions for vaccination of citizens in hard-to-reach and remote rural settlements», — he stressed.

The Head of Government also outlined the need to ensure an appropriate regime for the storage and transportation of vaccines, especially in rural areas, while increasing the responsibility of health workers.

«It is necessary to monitor the dissemination of deliberately false information about vaccination in the press and social networks and respond promptly to such statements. District health workers should explain to parents about the importance and safety of preventive vaccinations for children», — The Prime Minister concluded.