Evelyn Lirri
30 July 2008
The risk of people dying from easily preventable and curable illnesses is worrying health experts and the government.
The Ministry of Health is now calling for renewed efforts in surveillance, prevention and control measures to be able to contain the threat from preventable diseases like cholera and Hepatitis E that have recently made a major comeback.
These diseases, whose means of prevention are usually cheap, are also posing serious challenges to the already disease burdened health sector.
Health Minister, Dr Stephen Mallinga said that improvements in sanitation are effective in controlling cholera outbreaks that have already hit parts of Eastern Uganda.
Since June 2008, a cholera outbreak has been spreading through the districts of Pallisa, Mbale, Butaleja, Tororo and Manafwa.
Cholera is a serious disease characterised by profuse diarrhoea and vomiting. It kills within a short time. It is spread through eating food or taking drinks contaminated with faeces containing cholera germs (Bacteria).
Yet simple preventive measures like washing hands with soap and water before preparing, serving and eating food, washing hands well with soap and water after using the toilet/latrine, boiling all drinking water and keeping it covered in jerry cans or other secure containers and cooking food thoroughly and eating it while it's still hot could avert the otherwise burdensome diseases like cholera.
"Cholera outbreak is a result of poor personal and domestic hygiene and sanitation. Political, community and civic leaders are urged to mobilise the public for hygiene and sanitation improvement," Dr Mallinga said.
Giving an update on the epidemic, Dr Mallinga said cases of cholera are still worrying and increasing although the Ministry of Health has put in place measures to control the outbreak from spreading.
Cholera treatment centres have been established in the affected districts and drugs are also available for those affected.
"The Ministry of Health, working with development partners and the affected districts has established cholera treatment centres, provided drugs for treating cholera cases, and instituted other outbreak control measures," Dr Mallinga said.
He urged the public to be on the alert and report any suspected cholera cases to the nearest health unit. Like cholera, Hepatitis E, which hit parts of Northern Uganda in October 2007, continues to take its toll on the community.
So far, 72 people have died from Hepatitis E since the epidemic broke out last year, according to the latest update report from the Ministry of Health.
Another 4,000 cases have also been registered. Its cause is also related to poor personal and domestic hygiene and sanitation. According to Dr Mallinga, Hepatitis E is a new disease in the country which was confirmed in December 2007.
It is transmitted by eating food or drinking water that is contaminated with faeces. Hepatitis E has been exacerbated by the fact that most homesteads do not have pit latrines-only 58 percent homesteads in the country have pit latrines or toilets.
"We need to have by-laws to make sure people construct toilets. In Busia District where an outbreak of cholera was reported, latrine coverage was low but we forced people to dig latrines and now coverage is almost 80 percent," said Dr Sam Zaramba, the Director General of Health Services.
Dr Mallinga is urging all homesteads to construct pit latrines.
A person with Hepatitis E virus infection presents with fever, headache, general body weakness, muscle pains, and eventually develops yellowing of the eyes and passes urine of a deep yellow colour.
And according to Dr Mallinga, interventions like improving access to safe water, construction of pit latrines and improving household hygiene could avert such outbreaks.
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