Georgetown : Efforts are being made by the Ministry of Health to ascertain the trend of diarrheal diseases following the recent spate of rainfall. According to Chief Medical Officer, Dr Shamdeo Persaud, the Ministry has been relying heavily on its surveillance system which has been providing information of this nature on a daily basis since the rainy season commenced. “We have been examining and compiling our reports and so far for the first four weeks of this year there have been no increase in diarrheal diseases.” Since Sunday, the Ministry commenced its daily reporting routine and according to the Chief Medical Officer by the end of the week “we will be able to establish a trend.” He noted though that, while as of Tuesday last there were no reports of an increase in diarrhea, this state of affairs could change with the recent change in the weather pattern if necessary precautions are not taken.
The last time the Ministry was faced with an increase of gastroenteritis (diarrheal illnesses) was in early 2010 when just over 11,000 cases of infected children were reported. This development had occurred during the first four weeks of the year with the Ministry disclosing that for every 10,000 population in Guyana, about 800 episodes of gastroenteritis occur each year.
According to the Ministry the rate of this illness in children under five is about 1,200 episodes for every 10,000. This, in essence, translates to the fact that almost 30 percent of deaths of children under five are caused by diarrheal illnesses.
As such the The Ministry’s Health Communication Unit has been playing a pivotal in ensuring that persons are furnished with necessary advisories and fliers that serve to inform persons of how to guard against water borne and vector borne diseases, according to Director of Adolescent Health and Wellness, Dr Marcia Paltoo. “We want to ensure that as much of the information as possible gets out to the public and this is especially for the health of adolescents because while many adults may know the dangers many of the young people do not…for some students and young children the water is fun and they don’t recognize the dangers…”
As such she noted the importance of collaborating with the media to ensure that the message is sent out to the public which extends to the importance of preservation and protection of water sources.
Globally, one in every four children experience at least two episodes of diarrhea and vomiting each year. However, in Guyana gastroenteritis occurs in every geographic region and as such is not a new illness, the Ministry has asserted.
The problem has over the years remained a global public health problem in both developed and developing countries, although it assumes greater significance in developing countries. Further, it was noted that the occurrence of gastroenteritis is seasonal and the highest incidence occurs in the months of December, January, February and March.
And since the Ministry considers the occurrence of gastroenteritis as a major public health problem, it was noted that efforts are made to monitor the incidence of diarrheal illnesses throughout the country.
But while all health facilities in Guyana, including private doctors and private hospitals, have to report incidences on a weekly basis to the Ministry of Health, it has been revealed that one of the problems the Ministry has been confronted with is the unreliable reporting from health facilities around the country. For this reason Chief Medical Officer, Dr Shamdeo Persaud, had been instructed to write to all health authorities to ensure compliance to the Ministry of Health requirements.
Gastroenteritis or diarrheal illnesses is a public health problem and largely can be stopped by good hygiene, according to the Ministry. As such the Ministry has been active in promoting good hygiene. The Ministry as a result has been urging that persons adopt hygienic practices such as hand washing, boiling water, the use of bleach, cooking food thoroughly and by keeping containers of drinking water closed.
You must be logged in to post a comment.