The Independent (Banjul)
25 June 2004
opinion
Banjul — Malaria is a killer disease that can be prevented and cared for, if the necessary steps are taken, at the right time.
It is a major public health problem not only in The Gambia, but also in the whole African continent.
It affects all age groups in The Gambia, but the most affected group is the children under the age of five. The disease is not only a health problem, but also an economic burden in The Gambia, especially during the rainy season. It is also, the time when the disease becomes rampant, with mosquitoes seen all over, breeding on inhabitants.
They are often infested in stagnant water, as can be found in most surroundings; and in places where people line.
Childcare is particularly concerned about steps or measures taken to put in place to see how people can be helped to prevent or cure the affected children in our communities.
Although accurate figures for the admission and dismission of number of deaths cannot be accessed due to logistical problem but data from the National Malaria Control Programme (NMCP) has indicated that 20% of the antenated and 40% of under-five in maternal and child health services are mainly due to malaria.
According to the NMCP for adequate management of malaria to be effective in The Gambia, every body should be involved in the process to minimize the devastating effects of the killer disease.
They have given out guideline using available literatures, which may suit in a local community to raise awareness on the harmful effects of malaria.
In the Gambia, over 90% of people affected with malaria are due to plasmodium falciparum but also other malaria infection may be due to plasmodium vivax, plasmodium a value or plasmodium malaria which according to the national malaria central programme is rarely seen in The Gambia.
Why must children suffer only when they acquire the disease and why must of them die as a result of delay in treatment; or the wrong application of treatment?
While there is limited figures to show how malaria and HIV/AIDS are related, when it comes to how it kills children many people in The Gambia see malaria as a threat to the way it kills children.
This is so because people who have spoken to Childcare have indicated that almost everyday one can hear or see children being killed by malaria.
According to medical reports, a person bitten by infected mosquito could have an average of 10-21days before one can feel some of its signs and symptoms.
Some of the commonest symptoms in children are fever, lethargy, and lack of appetite, vomiting, diarrhoea and coughing.
The person taking care of the child should take the child for laboratory investigation test or if at home, a nursing attentant should remove their cloths for a shower.
In complicated malaria, the child filled downy but can be able to drink, the temperature is the same as in the uncomplicated malaria, vomiting will occur, the child fill mildly dehydrated.
But in severer malaria which is caused by plasmodium falcipurium infection and usually occur a result of delay in treatment in the cares of other less serious malaria death in as a result of severer malaria occur within 24 hours of admission but this could be prevented is sicked children are taken care for at a very early stage.
There children should given priorities as soon as they arrive of the health center bath by patients and health workers there some of the emergency problem face by the child suffering from severer malaria are severer respiratory distress, central cyanosis, singm of shock, coma, cavubian and severer dehydration cerebral malaria is defined as unreadable coma not attributable to any other cause in a patient with falciparum malaria.
The earliest symptom of cerebral malaria in children is usually fever, (37-41) followed by failure to eat or drink, vomiting and coughing or common but diarrhoea is unusual and the history of symptoms preceding come may be very brief-commonly are or duo days with all this problem face a young ones why can we put or measure that can help use to prevent the disease ruder that sitting down and waiting still it come and takes away young and lovely season leader of our communities tomorrow. There are so many things that can be done to see that the prevalence of the disease is reduced. The monies spent by family members to care a one sicked child would have been use to pay for many at them to go to school.
The department of state for health has already introduce the treated bed net campaign since two years back which I very reasonable for any average Gambia.
People should also make sure that their environment and clean and well care for to stop mosquito's from getting place to led their eggs all unused material such as abandon tyires and tins should be thrown away.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2004 The Independent. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
