By Chilungamo Missi:
An inspection by Parliamentary Health Committee to Makhetha health centre and its surrounding communities in Blantyre Wednesday revealed that poor water supply is fueling cholera outbreak.
Makhetha Health Centre is one of the health facilities overwhelmed by Cholera patients to the extent that it has stopped offering other services but treating cholera patients only.
In an interview after the inspection tour, Chairperson for the Parliamentary Health Committee, Dr. Mathews Ngwale said the cholera situation in the area needs more effort to contain it.
“Our impression is that the situation here is very bad, you look at the area you see toilets next to wells where people are drawing water from, even health workers are unable to provide chlorine to households because water is flowing freely everywhere, therefore protection of the citizens is hard here.
“The main problem is water supply; people are drinking from unprotected wells because they do not access safe water,” said Dr. Ngwale.
He therefore said that water is a national issue demanding urgent solutions because if not careful, cholera will cease to be seasonal like in the past.
Blantyre District Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Merriam Jere Nyasulu said communities and other sectors should join efforts to combat cholera.
She said: “There is a need for joint efforts to combat this outbreak, it should not be the health workers only, communities and other sectors should join hands so that we fully curb the outbreak”.
On 10 January alone Blantyre had registered 104 new admitted Cholera cases with cumulative cases on 3184 and a death toll standing at 125.
