Reported cases of cholera in the Central Region had hit 268 as of last Wednesday evening. No death had been recorded.
This was made known by the Central Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Samuel Kwashie.
He said the cases were from the Cape Coast metropolis predominantly, particularly from the Abura and Pedu suburbs.
At a meeting with the Central Regional Coordinating Council to give a brief on the state of the outbreak last Thursday, Dr Kwashie said the health authorities and partners had intensified education on the disease in churches, schools, mosques and at funeral grounds, in an effort to contain its spread.
He commended health authorities in the region and some partners for the absence of fatalities since the outbreak of the disease.
The Central Region is the only region to have recorded an outbreak of cholera this year.
Out of the reported cases, 261 are from the Cape Coast metropolis, while five are from the Abura Asebu-Kwamankese District. The Asikuma Odoben Brakwa District and Komenda Edina Eguafo Abrem Municipality have reported one case each.
Dr Kwashie, however, intimated that almost all the cases reported outside of Cape Coast were linked to the metropolis in a way. “Victims in almost all of the cases reported outside of Cape Coast passed through the metropolis and might have taken in food or something in the area,” he said.
He urged residents in the region to be mindful of what they bought and ate.
Dr Kwashie said six committees had been established to contain the situation. The committees, he said, included that on logistics, water, sanitation and hygiene, surveillance, case management communication and coordination.
He commended the Ministry of Health, the Regional Coordinating Council and all the partners in health for their support.
Last year, 18 cases of cholera were reported in the region. The region had 3,846 cases of the disease during a national outbreak in 2014, with 60 deaths. It was the worse outbreak in a decade. There were no cases of the disease in 2013. However, in 2012, there were 108 cases with 12 deaths and 588 cases in 2011 with 11 deaths.
Meningitis
Dr Kwashie said the Central Region had not recorded any cases of meningitis this year.
He said the government was increasingly making health services accessible to all, adding that there were currently 235 Community-based Health Planning and services (CHPS) compounds in the region.
The Central Regional Minister, Mr Kweku Ricketts Hagan, said the region was relatively peaceful and commended the security agencies and traditional authorities for their role in maintaining peace in the region.
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(Via: CitiFM Online Ghana)
