Via Actualite.CD: DRC: Dreadful increase in cholera case numbers in South Kivu. Excerpt from the Google translation:
A total of 554 cholera patients were treated between May 28 and August 19 in Baraka (South Kivu), an average of 46 cases per week for 11 weeks, reports Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).
According to the organization's calculations, this represents nearly 70% of cholera cases reported in the province by the Provincial Health Division (DPS) of South Kivu over this period, which is the second most affected by cholera in the country since the beginning of the year, just behind Kasai Oriental.
Three months after the beginning of the epidemic, the response to prevent and stop the spread of the disease in and around Baraka remains largely inadequate and the affected population still does not have sufficient drinking water. In addition, the mobilization of the actors and resources they need to coordinate and respond to this emergency is laborious, alert MSF supports in particular the Cholera Treatment Center in Baraka.
"Beyond the medical care of patients affected by cholera, provided by the BCZ with the support of MSF and thanks to which we have been able so far to avoid deaths in the CTC, it is urgent that the response to the epidemic is improving in terms of access to drinking water, notably through the establishment of chlorination points and health promotion activities," says Fernando Galvan, MSF Head of Mission in the South Kivu.
"Measures to strengthen hygiene and sanitation in the area are one facet of the response to the epidemic, which must not only be curative but also seek to prevent transmission and spread," he added.
MSF is worried about the possible consequences of this lack of response, as this situation is likely to continue to deteriorate and impact the surrounding health zones.
