CSM OUTBREAK, DON’T SELF-MEDICATE
CSM OUTBREAK, DON’T SELF-MEDICATE March 01, 2010
BY PETER ATOGEWE WEDAM
ISD- BOLGATANGA MUNICIPAL
The Minister of Health Doctor Benjamin Kumbuor, has advised the public against administering drugs on their own in the treatment of Cerebro Spinal Meningitis [CSM] saying they should rather report immediately to the nearest health facility for proper diagnosis and treatment whenever signs of the disease occur including severe headache, stiffness in the neck and waist pains.
The minister gave this advice at the close of a day’s working visit to the Upper East region following reports of CSM outbreak more especially a new strain of the disease, the W135. The minister visited the Navrongo Health Research Centre, the War Memorial Hospital also in Navrongo and other health facilities in the region to have first-hand information about the CSM situation in the region.
Dr. Kumbuor said after going round with health personnel, he was impressed with the containment measures taken by the regional health directorate and that the situation was not as alarming as reported in sections of the media. He called for careful monitoring of migration levels of people from the East Mamprusi district in near-by Northern region which is known for yearly high prevalence of CSM.
In response to a question that the Ghana Health Service did not prepare adequately for the possible outbreak, Dr. Kumbuor explained that the regular vaccine for CSM types A and C has been provided for the region but that moves are being made to procure the vaccine for the W135 strain of the disease.
He explained that in any disease outbreak, an alert stage will be raised with the record of three cases whilst seven recorded cases with or without deaths puts a district at an epidemic stage. He revealed that with the current statistics in the region, Upper East has reached the epidemic stage where there is the need to call in the World Health Organisation to supply the needed vaccines to combat CSM with particular reference to the new strain, W135.
The Upper East Regional Director of the Ghana Health Service, Dr. Koku Awoonor-Williams who briefed the health minister on the meningitis situation, said a total of 94 CSM cases were recorded as at February 28, 2010 with 13 deaths, one of them coming from Burkina Faso . The W135 strain which is new in the region was recorded in five of the nine districts of the region; Bolgatanga Municipal – four cases, Bongo district – four cases and Builsa district one. The rest are Kassena-Nankana East – one case and Kassena-Nankana West – eight cases.
The regional director disclosed that 100,000 doses of CSM type A/C vaccine were allocated to the region by mid January 2010 for reactive vaccination. According to him, the region in turn distributed the vaccines to high risk sub-districts including Fumbisi, Bongo Soe, Nakolo, Sandema and others. Also, the security services such as the Bawku peace keepers, the prisons and the police in Bolgatanga benefited.
Dr. Awoonor-Williams said public education is ongoing with regular announcements on local radio stations and through outreach programmes. There have also been refresher training programmes for community based volunteers and the Red Cross mothers’ club groups to equip them with knowledge of the disease in order to assist in early detection for prompt management of CSM cases.
He appealed to the health minister to help provide laboratory reagents and lumber puncture needles for efficient conduct of laboratory tests and investigations.
The Upper East regional minister, Mr. Mark Owen Woyongo reiterated the need for people to sleep in well ventilated rooms whilst calling on churches to reduce their worship hours so that people are not kept close together for longer periods of time which will possibly cause transmission of CSM from person to person.
At the end of the day’s tour, the Health Minister commissioned two 33-seater Toyota buses valued at 260,000 Ghana Cedis and 20 sets of Dell Computers with accessories each costing 1,500 Ghana Cedis. The buses will go to the Nurses Training College and the Midwifery School both in Bolgatanga while the computers will be shared among various offices of the Ghana Health Service in the region.
BY PETER ATOGEWE WEDAM
ISD- BOLGATANGA MUNICIPAL
The Minister of Health Doctor Benjamin Kumbuor, has advised the public against administering drugs on their own in the treatment of Cerebro Spinal Meningitis [CSM] saying they should rather report immediately to the nearest health facility for proper diagnosis and treatment whenever signs of the disease occur including severe headache, stiffness in the neck and waist pains.
The minister gave this advice at the close of a day’s working visit to the Upper East region following reports of CSM outbreak more especially a new strain of the disease, the W135. The minister visited the Navrongo Health Research Centre, the War Memorial Hospital also in Navrongo and other health facilities in the region to have first-hand information about the CSM situation in the region.
Dr. Kumbuor said after going round with health personnel, he was impressed with the containment measures taken by the regional health directorate and that the situation was not as alarming as reported in sections of the media. He called for careful monitoring of migration levels of people from the East Mamprusi district in near-by Northern region which is known for yearly high prevalence of CSM.
In response to a question that the Ghana Health Service did not prepare adequately for the possible outbreak, Dr. Kumbuor explained that the regular vaccine for CSM types A and C has been provided for the region but that moves are being made to procure the vaccine for the W135 strain of the disease.
He explained that in any disease outbreak, an alert stage will be raised with the record of three cases whilst seven recorded cases with or without deaths puts a district at an epidemic stage. He revealed that with the current statistics in the region, Upper East has reached the epidemic stage where there is the need to call in the World Health Organisation to supply the needed vaccines to combat CSM with particular reference to the new strain, W135.
The Upper East Regional Director of the Ghana Health Service, Dr. Koku Awoonor-Williams who briefed the health minister on the meningitis situation, said a total of 94 CSM cases were recorded as at February 28, 2010 with 13 deaths, one of them coming from Burkina Faso . The W135 strain which is new in the region was recorded in five of the nine districts of the region; Bolgatanga Municipal – four cases, Bongo district – four cases and Builsa district one. The rest are Kassena-Nankana East – one case and Kassena-Nankana West – eight cases.
The regional director disclosed that 100,000 doses of CSM type A/C vaccine were allocated to the region by mid January 2010 for reactive vaccination. According to him, the region in turn distributed the vaccines to high risk sub-districts including Fumbisi, Bongo Soe, Nakolo, Sandema and others. Also, the security services such as the Bawku peace keepers, the prisons and the police in Bolgatanga benefited.
Dr. Awoonor-Williams said public education is ongoing with regular announcements on local radio stations and through outreach programmes. There have also been refresher training programmes for community based volunteers and the Red Cross mothers’ club groups to equip them with knowledge of the disease in order to assist in early detection for prompt management of CSM cases.
He appealed to the health minister to help provide laboratory reagents and lumber puncture needles for efficient conduct of laboratory tests and investigations.
The Upper East regional minister, Mr. Mark Owen Woyongo reiterated the need for people to sleep in well ventilated rooms whilst calling on churches to reduce their worship hours so that people are not kept close together for longer periods of time which will possibly cause transmission of CSM from person to person.
At the end of the day’s tour, the Health Minister commissioned two 33-seater Toyota buses valued at 260,000 Ghana Cedis and 20 sets of Dell Computers with accessories each costing 1,500 Ghana Cedis. The buses will go to the Nurses Training College and the Midwifery School both in Bolgatanga while the computers will be shared among various offices of the Ghana Health Service in the region.
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