Paktika: Cholera spreading in earthquake-hit districts

SHARANA (Pajhwok): Hundreds of people have been infected with cholera disease in earthquake-hit areas of southeastern Paktika province due to consumption of contaminated water and food, health officials say.

Dr. Mohammad Yahya Wiar, head of the 150-bed civil hospital in Sharana, told Pajhwok Afghan News during an interview that water had become contaminated in Giyan and Barmal districts following the earthquake.

In order to prevent the disease from spreading and treat infected persons, health centers have been activated in Giyan and Barmal districts and dozens of ailing people visited the facilities daily, he added.

He said most of the infected people were treated in these health centers and those in critical condition were referred to the provincial hospital or the hospital in Urgun district.

So far positive cases of cholera have been reported from only the earthquake affected districts of Paktika and no positive cases of the disease have been seen in other districts.

Without giving an exact figure for cholera patients in the said districts, Dr. Wiar said hundreds of people had been infected with the disease, most of them children and women.

He said daily one or two patients with severe cholera were brought to the hospital daily as their treatment was not possible in the districts. Medicine and health teams have been sent to Giyan and Barmal districts. The teams not only treat patients, but also create awareness among people on how to protect themselves from contracting the disease, he said.

He asked people to make sure that their water and food were clean and also emphasized that people should pay more attention to their hygiene/sanitary protection before drinking and eating, otherwise the disease could further spread.

He said cholera was a contagious disease caused by dirty water and food and was quickly transmitted from one person to another.

“This disease is also transmitted by mosquitoes. A source of water that is consumed by both humans and animals is transmitted quickly. It is a dangerous disease that can kill a person. Citizens should wash their hands before and after eating and use clean water and food.”

The director of the provincial hospital also talked about the increase in malnutrition of mothers and children in the province along with cholera and said malnutrition was  increasing due to poverty and not observing a gap between giving birth to children.

He said in the last one month, they treated 56 patients suffering from malnutrition, with 18 of them remained hospitalized.

Zareem Khan, a resident of Giyan district, said due to the lack of clean drinking water, the residents of the area were forced to use spring water, which has caused people to contract cholera.

He told Pajhwok Afghan News that if the government did not provide clean drinking water in the earthquake affected areas, not only cholera but many other diseases will spread.

He said: "It is very much true that there is an outbreak of diarrheal disease in our area, the cause of which is dirty water. If you see our drinking water, you will be surprised. It is full of dirt and sand. I fear the outbreak of other water-borne diseases. "

Musa, a resident of Barmal district, who brought a patient to the civil hospital, said after the earthquakes, the clean water of the springs in the area had become contaminated.

He adds that the stench of dead animals under the soil due to the earthquake was also a big problem, due to which skin disease and cholera have spread in the district.

He requested the government to pay more attention to the construction of clean water systems and the removal of garbage in addition to providing food and clothing.

In Paktika, cholera and malnutrition are increasing at a time when many people living in remote areas of this province are facing shortage of clean water and proper food.

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