James L Bomar Jr. then RI President, puts the first drops of vaccine into a child’s mouth.
October is just around the corner. It’s a time when Rotary places significant emphasis on polio eradication, its history and efforts to help eradicate the polio virus from the globe.
According to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, Polio’s documented history spans 3,500 years. An Egyptian stele from 1580-1350 BD depicts a priest with a withered leg, suggesting polio has existed since ancient times. However, systematic understanding of the disease developed much later.
The first clinical description come in 1789 when British physician Underwood documented what he called “debility of the lower extremities” in children. This marked the beginning of medical recognition of polio as a distinct condition rather than just unexplained paralysis.
Rotary has been working to eradicate polio for more than 45 years with a goal of ridding the world of this disease, a goal that is closer than ever.
Rotary’s first polio project was to vaccinate children the in the Philippines in 1979. Inspired by that successful vaccination campaign, Rotary went on to become a founding partner of the Global Eradication Initiative in 1988, which has reduced polio cases around the world by 99.9 percent.
Rotary uses its members’ skills and passion to build awareness, fundraise, and encourage governments to donate to support polio eradication efforts. Over one million Rotary members have volunteered their time and resources to help end polio. Rotarians have volunteered in administering the lifesaving vaccine drops in third world countries along with fundraising campaigns to help fund eradication efforts.
One of the most important partners in this effort is The Gates Foundation. The Gates Foundation provides technical support and invests in research to enhance polio vaccines, surveillance, and outbreak response. They have generously made a commitment to Rotary that for every $1 donated to the End Polio Now campaign, up to $50 million per year, the Foundation gives $2 for polio eradication.
Thanks to the generosity and commitment of our members, Rotary has contributed more than $2.9 billion in PolioPlus grants and countless volunteer hours to protect more than 3 billion children in 122 countries from this disease. Rotary’s advocacy efforts have played a role in decisions by governments to contribute more than $11 billion to the effort.
Today, polio remains endemic only in Afghanistan and Pakistan. But it’s crucial to continue working to keep other countries polio-free. If all eradication efforts stopped today, within 10 years, polio could paralyze as many as 200,000 children each year.
According to the Mayo Clinic, the majority of people infected with the polio virus are asymptomatic. About 25% of those infected will experience flu-like symptoms, such as a sore throat, fever and fatigue. Between 1-5 percent develop a form of viral meningitis, which is inflammation of the covering of the brain and spinal cord. Some people experience long-lasting neurological symptoms, such as tingling, “pins and needles” sensation in their legs and feet. Up to 1% of cases result in paralysis, sometimes so severe that they lose the ability to breathe.
District 5340 is very proud of the efforts of clubs in this endeavor and encourages all clubs to engage in fundraising and public awareness campaigns to educate the public on Rotary’ efforts to eradicate this dreaded disease. We can’t stop the fight; we must prevail in global eradication. World Polio Day is October 24. Start your plan today!
Several noteworthy items can be found under District News below. Interested Rotarians have an opportunity to administer the lifesaving vaccine in two different vaccination missions to India that include tours of Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, Ranthambore (tiger reserve) and Rotary projects, making this a humanitarian effort combined with professional networking opportunities and cultural immersion. One is slated for next month and the other is planned for Mach 2027. Other activities sponsored by Rotaract are their two End Polio Now campaigns –a seven bridges walk in Balboa Park on October 24 and an upcoming pub crawl. Stay tuned to Newsbits for details.