By Okong’o Oduya
Busia County: Malaria disease has been reported as the leading cause of deaths in Busia County, reports say.
Pneumonia is also said to be among the top killers after Malaria.This was revealed during the recent celebrations of Malaria world day in Busia County. the pandemic has increased from 36 percent in 2016 to 40 percent this year.
Addressing the public, Busia County Director of health, Dr. Melisa Lutomia, said that the efforts put in place by the county government and other stakeholders are yet to yield fruits.They further noted Budalangi Sub- County as leading in malaria infections in the County.
Dr. Lutomia noted with concern that many cases are rarely reported since the affected persons opt for medical help Over the Counter with local pharmacists benefiting at large.
“As a County, we are in the region that is prone to malaria infections, and we are doing what we can in preventing more infections but it seems we need to do a lot. This is because the number of new infections being reported in the county is increasing daily.”
She advised people with blood group A+ to always take a lot of precaution in preventing malaria transmission adding that research reveals that mosquito love sucking blood from people of blood group A+.
Busia County Chief Officer in health department Asoka Itur noted that as a County they are doing all they can to eradicate the disease sentiments that were echoed by his counterpart, the Chief Officer in public health department Miss Ekisa Akisa.
Busia County committee member in health sector Dr. Maurice Siminyu advised people of the County to make proper use of treated mosquito nets disputing the allegation that people who sleep under treated nets are in danger of being diagnosed with cancer.
Siminyu emphasized the need to invest a lot in malaria as it was a number one cause of deaths reported in the County. He said they are using chemicals to spray the breeding zones as a way of preventing the disease.
“Malaria is killing a lot of people compared to what cancer is killing. This means that we need to invest a lot in malaria prevention to avoid more killings. There is nothing like people who sleep under treated mosquito nets are exposing themselves to cancer infections, those are the kind of reports that should be researched further.” He said.
However, Siminyu raised the fear that Busia being a border county, it is hard to deal the problem because of the increasing number of people from Uganda crossing the border seeking for medical services, which makes it hard to budget for them.
He further noted that their effort to destroy mosquito breeding zones in Kenya are yet to be productive since their counterparts in Uganda fail to do so and in return, mosquitos migrate from Uganda to Kenya jeopardizing their efforts.
Lack of enough medical facilities and equipment to handle a large number of people seeking for medication in the hospitals also play a big role in handling the problem.
Simiyu noted, “Pregnant women and children are most at risk of contracting Malaria.These two groups of people are in great danger of contracting malaria that is why we are treating them free of charge as well as giving them free mosquito nets as a way of reducing deaths caused by malaria.”
Although the County has redirected their efforts in helping pregnant mothers and children from being infected with Malaria, It was recommended that Partnerships with stakeholders in the health sector will help to completely eradicate malaria in the region.
Related article: https://www.talkafrica.co.ke/steps-kenya-made-combat-malaria/
