JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA (ADV) – Uganda’s Primary Health Care State Minister, Joyce Moriku Kaducu, has urged citizens to report any suspected cases of cholera amid heavy rains which may worsen the spread of the disease.
“Cholera kills a person within hours so the public is urged to be vigilant and report any suspected cases to the nearest health facility,” said Kaducu.
This follows after the ministry of health revealed more than 40 suspected cases of cholera. Two people have died at the hands of the disease in capital Kampala.
The ministry has also set up an isolation unit to treat patients.
“More efforts are needed to ensure that the cholera outbreak is contained. We should work more to ensure we don’t have many cases,” said the state minister.
Kampala has been affected by overpopulation, poor hygiene practices and high consumption of filthy water.
Most slum dwellers have no toilets in their houses and the common practice is to defecate in polythene bags and dump the contents in open trenches and pools of floodwater.
A Project Officer for Joy For Children in Kampala, Charlotte Kusemererwa, said the recent outbreak of cholera, mostly affecting some city suburbs, is mainly due to improper waste disposal and water contaminated with faecal content as the leading cause of spreading bacteria.
“The common denominator of all slums around Kampala is the open drainage channels littered with domestic, industrial and human wastes. When the rains sweep in, running water carries all kind of waste and dumps it in open drains, causing a massive blockage and hence flooding,” Kusemererwa.
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