The Health Worker - A Film on AEFI

This story of a auxiliary nurse midwife (ANM) documents the importance of clear and timely communication when an adverse event following immunisation (AEFI) occurs. It shows the ways in which the health care team at a primary health centre (PHC) in India promptly responds to a case of a health emergency in a specific child and the need for vaccine safety. The film portrays the team as they complete the case reporting form (CRF), speak to the district health workers and the villagers, and ensure that every fact is recorded and disseminated to the relevant officials. The story ends well (the child's menengitis was just a coincidence not due to the oral polio vaccine (OPV), hepatitis B, and diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), and tetanus (DPT) vaccines the child had received). The lesson is that acting quickly to tell others and find and document all the facts of the case while treating the child promptly is key when an AEFI is suspected.